Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis weakens your bones and makes your bones thinner and less dense than they should be. Although your bones naturally loses some of their density as you age, osteoporosis causes your bones to become much more fragile and weaker than they should be.
Signs & Symptoms
Osteoporosis doesn’t exhibit symptoms the way many other conditions do, and is often referred to as a “silent disease”. You may not feel or notice anything until a fall results in a broken bone. Despite that, you may still notice a few changes in your body that shows your bones are losing strength or density, including:
- Losing a few centimetres of your height
- A stooped posture
- Shortness of breath
- Lower back pain
Living with Osteoporosis
The most important part of osteoporosis is preventing bone fractures. Some common methods to manage osteoporosis include:
- Regular Exercise: You can strengthen your bones and muscles through regular exercise. Your physiotherapist may recommend weight-bearing and strength-training exercises to strengthen your muscles and train your balance. Examples of weight-bearing exercises include walking, jogging, running and stair climbing while strength training includes push ups and lifting weights.
- Vitamin and Mineral Supplements: You may be prescribed calcium or vitamin D supplements. Calcium is crucial for maintaining strong bones and teeth and can be found naturally in dairy products, dark green leafy vegetables and soy products such as tofu. Meanwhile, vitamin D is crucial for the body’s ability to absorb calcium and improve bone health. Dietary sources of vitamin D include cod liver oil, trout and salmon.
- Medications for osteoporosis: Your medical provider will inform you of which prescription to take to best manage your condition.
Top 3 Steps To Prevent Falls For Elderly
We speak to our geriatric specialist Dr. Vina Doshi to learn the top three steps to reduce or remove factors causing falls in older patients.
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Move well. Feel well. Caring together for your bones and joints means taking care of your range of movements and the quality of life you want. From exercise and nutrition, to attending to injuries and long- and short-term conditions, moving well can influence your daily routines, work and play.
Empowering Yourself with Knowledge
This resource provides information about cancer, including:
- Importance of Bone & Joint Care: Understand the importance of maintaining your heart health.
- Common Orthopedic Conditions: Learn about the different types of common heart diseases and their characteristics.
- Key Risk Factors: Explore various modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors that may leave you susceptible to heart disease.
- Ways to Improve Bone & Joint Care: Learn about lifestyle factors and preventive measures to minimize your risk of heart disease.
What is Bone & Joint Care?
Bone and joint care focuses on maintaining the health and function of your musculoskeletal system, which includes bones, joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and cartilage. It involves preventing, diagnosing, and treating conditions that affect these structures, such as osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, fractures, sprains, and strains. Good bone and joint health is essential for mobility, independence, and overall quality of life.
Importance of Bone & Joint Care
- Mobility & independence: Healthy bones and joints allow you to move freely and perform daily activities without pain or limitations.
- Pain prevention: Bone and joint problems can cause chronic pain that affects your ability to work, sleep, and enjoy life.
What Causes Orthopedic Conditions?
Heart disease is caused by a complex interplay of factors, including:
- Non-Modifiable Factors: Age, gender, ethnicity family history, and inherited genetic mutations.
- Modifiable Factors:
- Lifestyle: Diet, occupation, sports and physical activities, and poor posture.
- Health: Obesity, Prior injuries
Symptoms of Orthopedic Conditions
Symptoms of orthopedic conditions may vary depending on the type of orthopedic conditions. However, some general signs and symptoms include:
- Pain in the affected segment of the bone or joint
- Swelling and Redness
- Joint stiffness
- Limited range of movement
- Numbness, tingling or weakness
Important Note: These symptoms may also be indicative of other health conditions. Speak to our Specialists today for proper evaluation and diagnosis.
Common Orthopedic Conditions in Singapore
- Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease that causes the breakdown of cartilage, the smooth tissue that cushions the ends of bones in joints.
- Fractures happen when there is a break in a bone, which can be caused by trauma or osteoporosis.
- Sprains & Strains, are stretches or tears of a ligament (sprain) and stretches or tears of a muscle or tendon (strain).
- Back Pain can be caused by various factors, including muscle strains, ligament sprains, disc herniation, and spinal stenosis.
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome happen when the median nerve, which runs through the wrist, is compressed.
- Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine that typically develops during adolescence.
Improving Bone & Joint Health
Here are some helpful ways to improve your bone & joint health:
- Eat a heart-healthy diet with an emphasis on calcium-rich food such as dairy-products and leafy green vegetables.
- Get enough vitamin D which is essential for calcium absorption. You can do so by getting sufficient sunlight or from fortified foods and supplements.
- Engage in regular physical activities by doing weight-bearing exercises such as jogging or stair climbing, muscle-strengthening exercises which build muscle mass and flexibility exercises such as yoga and stretching.
- Practice good posture, avoid slouching and maintain proper posture while sitting and standing.
- Manage existing medical conditions such as arthritis and osteoporosis through medication and lifestyle changes.
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