Osteoporosis/body armor

[annie]

Emily,

A good indicator of whether or not you need to be tested for bone density is your genetic history. If you've got family members who have/had osteoporosis/ostepenia, then you might want to be tested. I requested a bone desity test 4 years ago. (I was 47 then and not yet pre-menopausal.) My maternal grandmother had severe osteoporosis, and passed away at age 96 after having fallen and broken her pelvis. My mother was diagnosed with severe osteoporosis at age 70, despite leading a very active life, walking and lifting weights almost every day. So my genetics did not look promising! Which is why my doc was willing to order the test. As it turned out, I do indeed suffer from osteopenia (pre-cursor to the most severe osteoporosis.) I am now on fosomax. I've taken calcium supplements for years! I know cycling can actually be detrimental to my bones, so I try and run a couple times a week. Jumping rope is also a great activity for bone-building. Walking may help a bit, but it is the impact of harder landing that stresses the bones and helps keep them strong. Anyway, sorry to go on so........ it's a condition that easily hides itself. If you have a history in your family, I'd recommend having a test. If not, you may have to wait until your doctor is willing to order a test. Or choose to pay for it yourself. Tough decision for anyone.

annie

[suzieqtwa]

This month I was told to get a bone density test. I guess I should have had one sooner...but I always felt so strong ,and healthy. Anyway, I went through menopause at the age of 40 ,I have been on HRT for 13 years. I ran for 3 years ,and did the Portland Marathon last year. I'm a thin build (125 lbs). Well I just found out 3 days ago, I have ostepenia in my hips. I was SHOCKED as I have fallen on the pavement from running several time ,and never broke anything. I have a lot to learn ,and measures to take to try ,and stop it. Fosamax has a lot of bad side effects. I'm in the dis belief stage right (when did I become my grandmother). I always felt so healthy ,and indestructible. I have a doctor appointment tomorrow ,to try ,and find some solutions. ; (( Im 52.

[velogirl]

Suzie, you sure don't look 52 in your photo! Dang, whatever you're doing, keep doing it.

[DarcyInOregon]

For everyone reading this thread, there is an excellent book titled "Bike For Life - How to Ride to 100" by Roy M. Wallack and Bill Katovsky. Chapter 9 is titled "Cycling and Osteoporosis." It is a really good chapter and tells how many famous cycling athletes had to retire from the sport early because of severe osteoporosis. The authors describe the disease, how it may occur, how to prevent getting it, or how to keep the disease from getting worse. An example of one athlete is cited, and that is Tammy Jacques, a mountain bike champion who had to retire at the age of 32 because of severe bone loss. She worked with weight training, and took Fosamax, and a year later she had improved her bone density by 10%. Of course, it may be because she was young enough for her body to still build bone density.

This is just a personal comment by me. It is about cheese and dairy products. I am someone who has struggled with being overweight. During the years that I lost weight, I always paid attention to my nutrition, knowing what is in my family history, which includes the females getting osteoporosis. Everywhere, in books and on television, the experts say don't eat cheese because it is too high fat and too many calories. I always had the wisdom to realize that cheese is high in calcium, and made cheese or dairy products a part of my daily calories. Sometimes I wonder how many females have more severe bone loss because they considered many dairy products to be too caloric, and thus didn't eat enough dairy, and thus didn't get enough calcium over the long-run.

I am in the process of signing up for my bone density test. Suzie's test results shocked me, because if you met Suzie in person like I have, you would say, "wow, what a young beautiful healthy vital woman." Honestly, Suzie looks around age 40, not almost age 53.

And my mom had it and an older sister just got the diagnosis a few months ago. So I had better get my bone density test now, and find out what is what before it is too late.

[bambu101]

Some interesting comments on dairy products and osteoporosis. I grew up on a dairy farm, and for about 25 years drank whole, unpastureized, Holstein milk. This is the kind that the cream rises to the top, and has to be mixed into the milk before you can drink it. I'm sure this sounds nasty to a lot of people, and I currently drink 1% milk.

However, after the urging of my OB-GYN, I had a bone density test about a year ago, and it was off the charts (in a good way)! The results were more like the bone density of a 25 year old, and I am almost 53 and 2 years post-menopausal. I was happy, but not really surprised.

I think that a lot of women give up cheese and dairy products because of the high fat and calories, as Darcy said.

[Bad JuJu]

Hey Bambu, I remember that milk. Of course, I was a city kid, so our milk came in glass bottles, not straight from the cow, but it still had the cream on the top and you had to give the bottle a vigorous shake before opening and decanting the thick, white, delicious milk. My brother and I drank that stuff like water.

I haven't had a bone density test in a couple of years, but my last one, when I had been in menopause for about a year, was excellent. I can't digest milk any longer, but I take calcium supplements and try to choose other foods high in calcium such as lowfat yogurt.