Severe osteoporosis disease, or stage 4 osteoporosis, is often categorized by minimal mobility, unexplained fractures, and a drastic change of posture in the patient apart from debilitating permanent pain. A person with a severe form of the disease may be permanently hunched, which prevents them from carrying out their daily activities and dramatically affects their quality of life. Come World Osteoporosis Day on October 20, and the spotlight turns to this disease as it does yearly. However, it is not enough to only talk about osteoporosis disease on this one day of the year. The fact that the degenerative disease can so easily stunt your lifestyle and that it is easy to keep at bay with the proper steps makes it critical for us to learn more and spread awareness about osteoporosis.

The signs and symptoms of osteoporosis

Osteoporosis causes severe mineral density loss that makes the bones weak and brittle. The bone can snap when someone suffering from severe osteoporosis disease sustains even a minor fall or impact. In some cases, even an act of sneezing has been reported to result in a fracture. The biggest challenge here is that the bone disease symptoms are hidden in the early stages, and the disease grows in severity quite ‘silently.’

The few osteoporosis signs that may be apparent as the disease progresses are:

• Reducing grip when you try to hold something
• Brittle nails that crack or break easily with the most negligible impact

However, these signs and symptoms of osteoporosis are easy to overlook, and in most cases, this is precisely how the disease is allowed to progress to Stage 4 without check.

When the disease has progressed to a severe stage, the symptoms are pronounced and may include the following:

• Change in the posture where the patient is hunched over owing to spine curvature
• Frequent bone fractures with negligible impact or even coughing or sneezing
• Persistent pain in back and neck
• Loss of height because of spinal compression
• Shortness of breath caused by collapsed vertebra putting pressure on lungs

What causes osteoporosis?

In a healthy individual, the bones keep replenishing themselves. Old bones are eliminated, and new bones take their place in a naturally occurring continuous process. You develop osteoporosis when your body loses too many bones or enough bones are not being made anew to replace what is lost. The bones of a person with this disease look like a honeycomb, and the spaces in the honeycomb structure are far more significant than what you would see in healthy bones.

Osteoporosis is a disease caused by:

• Poor calcium intake throughout life leads to low bone density, pronounced bone loss, and increased fracture risk.
• Inadequate nutrition in dieters who restrict food intake drastically and lose weight excessively
• Constricted stomach size owing to gastrointestinal surgery, which leads to less surface area to absorb nutrients
• Some medicines, such as steroids or medications used for seizures, cancer, transplant rejection, etc.
• Certain diseases increase the risk of osteoporosis, such as celiac disease, IBS, cancer, multiple myeloma, kidney disease, and rheumatoid arthritis.

Besides, your lifestyle can put you at greater risk of this disease. Lack of exercise leads to unhealthy bones. Another common lifestyle factor that promotes bone deterioration is the regular consumption of alcohol or excessive smoking. Osteoporosis is more likely to affect those with these habits.

Keeping osteoporosis disease at bay

Staying active and physically fit is a simple and effective way to remain osteoporosis free. Simple exercises like walking or jogging can keep you fit, including maintaining your bone health. Weight-bearing exercises are even more beneficial in helping maintain and improve bone health.

Lifestyle changes should include avoiding alcohol or smoking or cutting both down to safe levels. Apart from this, looking into your diet plan and seeing that you add nutritious foods to your meals is a way to incorporate the proper nutrients your body needs to maintain bone density and bone health. The following are examples of foods that may help you meet your daily nutritional needs:

• Dairy products rich in calcium
• Fatty fish
• Green veggies, spinach, tomato, potatoes, sprouts, raisins, sweet potatoes, green leafy veggies
• Banana, papaya, orange, pineapple

Another critical step to prevent osteoporosis is regular health check-ups that include bone density and bone health evaluation. These tests tell you early if there are any symptoms of osteoporosis so that you can quickly correct your lifestyle or improve your diet to keep the disease from worsening. Health screening is the simplest and most effective way to free yourself from many dreaded diseases, not just osteoporosis. Identifying abnormalities at early stages enables you to begin treatment early when successful outcomes are more likely.

To begin your journey to better health, commit yourself to annual health check-ups this world osteoporosis day. Book your appointment for a whole body screening package at NURA Ai Health Screening center, where you get the dual benefit of cutting-edge Fujifilm imaging technology and Dr. Kutty’s Healthcare’s medical prowess. Friendly, trained technicians, a comfortable ambiance, and committed personnel make your annual health check-up a hassle-free, easy experience at NURA Ai Health Screening centre.