Preventing osteoporosis is not just about taking calcium supplements!

This is the 5179th article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

"Osteoporosis" is one of the most familiar diseases to the people today, but do you really know about this disease? Today, let's talk about the culprit of osteoporosis - bone mass.

What is bone mass?

Bone mass simply means the "stuff" in the bones! It indicates how much bone tissue there is per unit volume of bone. Let's use the milk tea that everyone has drunk as an analogy - the so-called "bone per unit volume" is like a "cup of milk tea"; and "bone tissue" can be regarded as "milk tea".

The bone tissue that makes up the skeleton in the human body mainly includes bone matrix and bone minerals. The bone matrix includes collagen, protein, inorganic salts and other components, while the bone minerals are the elements we are more familiar with, such as calcium and phosphorus. If we still use milk tea as an analogy, "bone matrix" and "bone minerals" are like the "tea base" and "ingredients" in milk tea.

Some milk teas have a light base and insufficient ingredients, which can be said to be tasteless and a pity to throw away; while some milk teas focus on "a cup of milk tea and half a cup of ingredients", which may seem like you are drinking a cup of tea, but is actually equivalent to a meal!

These two situations are like the imbalance of bone mass in our body - too low bone mass may cause osteoporosis, fractures, back and leg pain, etc.; too high bone mass may lead to bone sclerosis, increased bone brittleness, etc. Therefore, milk tea tastes good only when the ratio is balanced, and maintaining a stable bone mass is healthy!

What do we do in our daily lives that affect bone mass?

The amount of bone mass in the human body fully proves a point - "Life lies in exercise." In recent years, many studies have shown that moderate exercise can effectively increase the level of bone mass in the body.

Of course, the factors that affect bone mass are far more than just exercise! Diet, lifestyle, endocrine diseases, etc. can all lead to bone loss in the body, and even osteoporosis!

How to deal with bone loss?

① Calcium supplementation is necessary, but it cannot be taken randomly!

Simply supplementing calcium is often not very effective in replenishing bone mass. The reason is actually very simple. We might as well regard the increase or decrease of bone mass in the body as a war - the affirmative side is the "increase" side, and the negative side is the "decrease" side. The affirmative side represents osteoblasts, calcium, and vitamin D; the negative side represents osteoclasts, endocrine, and lifestyle habits. Their balance depends on many factors, and calcium supplementation alone is not enough.

② Bone mass pyramid wishes you healthy bones

There are two options for improving bone mass - general treatment and drug therapy.

General treatment is the top priority. Maintain adequate exercise and sunlight - ensure outdoor exercise > 2 times a week, > 10-20 minutes each time; a balanced and scientific diet - milk, high-quality protein (such as chicken, shrimp, fish), green leafy vegetables and a low-salt diet (especially women should not exceed 6g/day) are all indispensable; improve bad living habits - quit smoking, drink small amounts of alcohol, and drink coffee and tea in moderation.

Drug treatment is the first choice for patients with pathological diseases (such as osteoporosis). They should take calcium tablets scientifically to increase bone-forming raw materials, take vitamin D3 to promote calcium ion absorption, and take drugs to treat underlying diseases to prevent additional loss of calcium ions.

Finally, I hope everyone will not ignore the "bone mass" in our bodies and have a healthy and strong skeleton! See you next time~

Author: Jiading Hospital, Shanghai First People's Hospital

Orthopedics Department Chi Chenshen Attending Physician