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Osteoporosis symptoms




osteoporosis-symptoms I've been doing my due diligence (very late to the gate, I might add) about osteoporosis symptoms, and the news isn't good.  In fact there is no good news unless I consider the studies and work done in the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis symptoms.  I was searching article after article looking for something to report, but found the first line in each article or study began with,"You will not have any symptoms."  That is for the most part true if you don't pay close attention.  For example, one of the symptoms is height loss.  I haven't taken that measurement since I left puberty decades ago.  Another is joint or muscle aches which I've never experienced, or having trouble getting up from a chair without using my arms.  That still hasn't happened to me.  There is one symptom that does trouble me, and that is increased stooping. The reason that troubles me is because I do have the tendency to lean forward, just as my mother does.  That can lead to curvature of the spine so I've tried to pay attention to that and I keep reminding myself to lift myself up by my breast bone. 

Some of the other osteoporosis symptoms aren't as obvious so you've got to see your doctor about this. They can test your heart rate to see if it's over 80 beats per minute and do a blood test to see how high your levels are of serum calcium or alkaline phosphatise. These symptoms are also present in other health problems, so I think it's really difficult to tell if your dear bones are withering away. A good old bone density test should take a good snapshot of where you stand. I'm having one taken every two years because any sooner and they wouldn't be able to see enough of a difference in change.

Don't confuse osteoporosis symptoms with arthritis and think that you can wait for the swelling and joint pain. This disease rears its ugly head before you can say, "fractured vertebrae". You know when they say, "She fell over and broke her hip"? That's only half right. Usually in advanced stages of osteoporosis they, "Break their hip then fall over". I can only imagine how painful emotionally and physically that can be. Once they end up bed ridden then they have a whole new set of problems to deal with like bed sores or worse pneumonia or blood clots.

My own experience is like when Harrison Ford in one of his Indiana Jones movies stands in quick sand. By the time he realizes he's in the thirsty brew he's sinking and there's little he can do. I remember that look in his eyes and the feeling he invoked. That's how I feel, but like Harrison Ford, there is a way out. You've got to take steps to avoid what would lie ahead if you don't heed the call. If you pay attention and take care you can live out your life in reasonable comfort.

The only thing that I can reflect upon, in wondering what went wrong with me, was that I was on a high protein diet for quite a while. Dr. Atkins was my hero and he kept me thin for quite a few years. Little did I know the ramifications of a high protein diet. I do remember leg cramps and dull aches and pains but I don't recall any discomfort till I decided to work more and exercise less. I've noticed a couple of years ago that my back would ache as I stepped off a curb but I thought that was a structural problem for my chiropractor. It never dawned on me that I had stepped in my own 'quicksand'.

So the moral of my story is to pay attention to your body's aches and pains and stay on a balanced diet. Basically the Canada Food guide is a good example to live by. Don't forget to exercise your lungs, bones and muscles then you'll be tall and strong well into your advanced years.

I'm sure that you would all agree that the years between 30 and 50 fly by at lightning speed and from there on time speeds up even faster. Somehow, we don't have time to eat properly or exercise but we really need to sit back and ponder the consequences if we don't. It's time to put myself first or I'll end up being a burden to my family and that's the last thing that I want.

Osteoporosis symptoms are subtle but that is no excuse for anyone to suffer the consequences, so take my advice and listen to the clues your body gives you. Pay attention to the subtle changes you see or feel and if you are a candidate for osteoporosis, do your due diligence and have your tests done, you'll be glad you did.



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