94% of osteoporosis patients are women… mainly focused on menopause
Menopausal women experience significant changes in their bodies. With menopause, estrogen (female hormone) rapidly decreases, and the body begins to break out. Estrogen played a role in protecting blood vessels and bones, but is now disappearing. One of them is that the strength of the bones weakens and breaks easily. Osteogenesis – Are there any good foods for osteoporosis?
◆ People who visited the hospital with osteoporosis… 94% female, focused on menopause
The number of people visiting hospitals and clinics for osteoporosis is increasing. According to the National Health Insurance Corporation’s health insurance treatment data, the number of people diagnosed with osteoporosis increased from 913,852 in 2017 to 1,138,840 in 2021, an increase of 224,988 (24.6%) in four years. The average annual growth rate is 5.7%. Among the people treated in 2021, women accounted for 94%, mainly focusing on menopause. Starting in your 40s and 50s, you need to pay attention to food, such as calcium supplementation, to keep your bones healthy.
◆ If a hip bone is broken, hospitalization for 2~3 months, rehabilitation for 1 year… I can change my gait
Osteopenia – Osteoporosis is a disease in which the amount of bones decreases and their strength decreases, making them brittle. When you are young, even if you fall backwards and hit your buttock, you just have to shake it off and get up, but when you reach menopause, even your hip joint (hipbone) can be broken. If the hip joint, which connects the upper part of the femur, is broken, it requires hospitalization for 2 to 3 months and rehabilitation for 1 year after discharge. This is because the gait can change into a limp. Hospitalization for hip fractures in later life increases the risk of death.
◆ Prevention of symptomless bone loss… Calcium and vitamin D should be taken care of from the age of 40
Bone mass gradually decreases, and there are no symptoms even if it worsens to bone loss-osteoporosis. Only when you fall and fracture, “Did I have osteoporosis?” enough to recognize. During menopause, it is important to manage symptoms such as hot flashes and hot flashes, but you need to pay close attention to bone loss that is progressing without your knowledge so that you can spend a healthy late middle age and old age. At menopause, estrogen (female hormone), which has the effect of inhibiting osteoclasts that destroy bones, disappears. To prevent osteoporosis, if you are over 40 years of age, it is important to eat calcium foods frequently and maintain vitamin D levels, which are involved in calcium absorption.
◆ Table for women in their 40s and 50s… Calcium foods such as small anchovies, yogurt, and sea radish are essential
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s ‘Nutrition Intake Standards for Koreans’, the highest prevalence of osteopenia was found in women over the age of 50. If you don’t pay attention to calcium foods that are good for your bones, even a small shock can break your bones. It is helpful to frequently eat dairy products such as small anchovies, bone-in fish, siraegi, and yogurt during meals. According to the National Standard Food Composition Table (per 100g), anchovies contain 680mg of calcium. It is more than three times that of milk (205mg). Yogurt, siraegi, spinach, chard, etc. also have a lot of calcium.
You should also pay attention to vitamin D, which promotes calcium absorption in the body. These days, with the spread of sunscreen, vitamin D deficiency is not uncommon. Sunlight is the best way to produce vitamin D. It is good to expose your bare skin to sunlight for 20 to 30 minutes in the morning. It is good to do aerobic exercise such as walking for at least 30 to 60 minutes a day, 5 days a week. It is also helpful to train the calf muscle strength by lifting and lowering the heel.