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Taking a Look at Osteoporosis

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[INTRODUCTION] Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to fracture. It has been defined as “a systemic skeletal disease characterized by low bone mass and microarchitectural deterioration of bone tissue, with a consequent increase in bone fragility and susceptibility to fracture” (Gueldner, Britton, Madhavan et al. 2014). Usually the bone loses density, which measures the amount of calcium and minerals in the bone. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, by 2020, half of all Americans over age fifty are expected to have either osteoporosis or low bone density. Guelder, Britton, Madhaven et al. say that this decrease in bone strength is heavily associated with the increased risk of hip, wrist, and spine fractures, and the pain, along with loss of function which adversely affects a person’s quality of life (2014).
Today more than 44 million Americans are affected by low bone density or osteoporosis. About one in two women and up to one in four men over the age 50, are expected to break a bone due to osteoporosis. Of the estimated 44 million Americans with osteoporosis, about 80% are women. Osteoporosis is more prevalent in women fifty years and older and is responsible for many fractures and deaths of its victims.
National Osteoporosis Awareness and Prevention Month is celebrated each May, and becomes a chance for our Nation to become educated on the effects of this disease, and about the preventable steps that we can take to deal

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