Risk Factors For Osteoporosis

Last Updated: July 1, 2003

Risk factors for osteoporosis include advanced age, family history, menopause, a low-calcium diet, inactivity, smoking, excessive alcohol use, eating disorders and use of medications such as corticosteroids or anticonvulsants.

Factors you can control:

• Not getting enough calcium or vitamin D, either from diet or supplements
• A sedentary lifestyle, especially when young and a life’s worth of bone mass is being developed
• Smoking
• Over-consumption of alcohol

Factors you cannot control:

• Gender – women have a five times greater risk than men of getting osteoporosis; but note that men do get osteoporosis.
• Genetics – the upper limit of bone mass a person can acquire is genetically determined
• Ethnic heritage. White and Asian women are at higher risk, however African-American and Hispanic women are also at risk.
• Thin, small-boned frame. However, heavier women can also suffer from osteoporosis and contrary to popular belief being overweight does not protect one from the disease.
• Broken bones, stooped posture in older family members, which may indicate osteoporosis, or a known family history of the disease.
• Early estrogen deficiency. This may be due to early menopause (before age 45) or from surgical removal of the ovaries.
• Advanced age.
• Prolonged use of some medications including excessive thyroid hormone, some anti-seizure medications and certain anti-inflammatory medications including prednisone, used to treat asthma, arthritis and some cancers.
• Growth hormone deficiency in children and adolescents.

Testing for osteoporosis
Until recently, testing for osteoporosis was difficult until the disease was in its advanced stage. Little treatment was available except for estrogen. Times have changed and new techniques reveal osteoporosis in its beginning stages. Early testing requires lower doses of radiation than conventional X-rays. A whole new set of drugs can halt calcium loss in bones.

Who should be tested?
The National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends bone density scans for:

• All women 65 and older
• All postmenopausal women under 65 who have risk factors for the disease or who have had a bone fracture
• All women who would take HRT if they knew their bone density was low
• All women who have taken HRT for a long period

What is a bone density test?
Bone density tests are a form of X-ray that can detect the early stages of bone loss. Taken at regular intervals, much like a mammogram, they can chart the rate of bone loss, allowing treatments to be adjusted.

Ultrasound. Using many of the same techniques that allow a physician and expectant mother to view a developing child during pregnancy, ultrasound can also reveal bone density and predict fractures. Because it does not use any radiation, it is safe for pregnant women and for frequent tests. Also, because so many doctors have ultrasound equipment in their offices, the test can be run as part of a physical.

Biochemical testing. A simple urine test can test for bone breakdown. The test doesn’t measure bone density directly, so it is not the effective tool that imaging methods are.

We Have Answers Do you have medical questions or need help finding a doctor? The experts at Columbia St. Mary's and Advanced Healthcare can help. Click here.