More than 20 million Americans have osteoporosis and over 16 million don't even know it. This condition, in which the bones are thin, brittle and susceptible to fracture, is usually silent until a bone is broken and the individual is left with pain, deformity and possible disability. With recent advances in medical science, there is better understanding of principles in prevention and hope for improvement once damage has been done.
Bone is an active tissue which remodels and rebuilds continuously.
Bone grows in length and height until late adolescence, then rapidly becomes thicker and stronger over the next two years, gradually strengthens a little more until the late 20s, and then begins to thin and weaken during the remainder of one's life. During menopause, or whenever women or men lose their sex hormones, there is a rapid loss of bone over a period of several years and a worsening of age-related bone loss afterwards. As one gets older, the bone becomes less responsive to medical intervention and currently little can be done to make it more active. Consequently, the earlier we do things to help our bones, long before they become broken, the better we will be in avoiding future disability. The interior of bone is a crass-cross lattice of miniature bridges that provide enormous stability and elasticity.