Did you know that osteoporosis affects around 54 million individuals, the bulk of whom are in their golden years? And unfortunately, it runs a higher risk among mature adults. And this is why it is crucial to understand osteoporosis better, especially if you are in your golden years. In particular, this article will tackle the common belief that osteoporosis is hereditary. Read on to see if it is a fact or a myth.
What Is Osteoporosis?
Before we dive in to understand if osteoporosis is hereditary or not, you need to understand what exactly is osteoporosis first. According to the National Institute of Aging, osteoporosis is a condition that causes bones to become weak to the point of breaking easily, most often in the hip, wrist, and backbone, which is also known as your spine. Unfortunately, because you may not notice any changes until a bone breaks, osteoporosis is also known as a “silent” disease.
Is Osteoporosis hereditary?
If your parents or ancestors have osteoporosis, does this mean you will be subjected to osteoporosis in the future too? Is it a myth or fact that it is hereditary? To make things simple, yes, it is true that osteoporosis is hereditary. This means that if your parents or relative has had an osteoporosis-related fracture, your own risk of fracture is likely to be higher than average. This is most likely due to genetic characteristics that influence bone growth. Nonetheless, keep in mind that it simply means that you run a higher risk of osteoporosis but it is not 100% certain that you will get it. And while we do not know if a specific genetic fault causes osteoporosis, we do understand that patients with osteogenesis imperfecta, a relatively rare genetic illness, are more prone to fracture.
Other Factors
While the risk of osteoporosis may run higher based on your family history, there are numerous other factors that can also cause the risk to increase. Tobacco, for example, is directly hazardous to bones when smoked heavily. In fact, it even causes early menopause in women by lowering estrogen levels. Men who smoke have reduced testosterone levels, which might damage their bones. Drinking too much alcohol is another factor that can increase the risk of osteoporosis. This is because excessive drinking of alcohol can impair the body’s capacity to produce bone. It also raises the chances of fracturing a bone if you fall. If you have poor or insufficient nutrition, you can also have a higher risk of developing poor nutrition – If you don’t get enough calcium or vitamin D in your diet, or if you’re underweight, you’re more likely to develop osteoporosis. In particular, If you do not have sufficient calcium or vitamin D levels in your body, or if you are underweight, you are more likely to develop osteoporosis.
Apart from all that, the absence of weight-bearing exercise can also cause a higher risk of osteoporosis. After all, exercising promotes bone formation, while the lack of exercise increases your chance of losing calcium from your bones and getting osteoporosis. Because muscle and bone health are related, it is also critical to maintain muscular strength, which will help you avoid falling.
