Have you ever thought about why, as you age, you tend not to stand up as tall as you once did? Believe it or not, there are actually several different reasons why growing old might cause changes to posture.
Perhaps it’s because the discs between your vertebrae may have begun to dry out, allowing the bones in your spine to move closer together.
Or your vertebrae could be weakened by osteoporosis or its milder form, called osteopenia, and as a result, your bones become brittle. Symptoms of both include back pain, a loss of height, bones that break much more easily, and a stooped posture.
As you age, you lose muscle mass, including in the muscles that support your spine and help keep you upright.
Osteoporosis is common among senior women. Studies have shown that 50% percent of U.S. women age 50 and older will break a bone due to osteoporosis.
Another related condition is kyphosis, which also occurs more often in older women. With kyphosis, weakness in the bones of the spine causes them to compress or crack. This can produce an excessive outward curvature of the spine and a hunching of the back.
Some of the symptoms of kyphosis include:
- Difference in shoulder height
- The head bends forward compared to the rest of the body
- When bending forward, the height of the upper back appears higher than normal
- Tight hamstrings
Severe kyphosis can create breathing difficulties, limit physical function, cause digestive problems, and lead to social isolation due to poor body image. It affects between 20 and 40 percent of older adults, with the greatest occurrence in women between the ages of 50 and 70.
Posture Problem Prevention and Treatment
Osteoporosis prevention includes obtaining the optimum amount of calcium in your diet. A well-balanced diet may provide the needed amount of calcium, but do not consume too much of the mineral. Too much calcium in the body can weaken bones, create kidney stones, and interfere with how your heart and brain work. The recommended daily intake of calcium for women 51 and older is 1,200 mg.
Vitamin D is also important because it helps your body absorb the calcium that strengthens your bones, which helps prevent changes to posture. Recommended goals are 600 international units (IU) of vitamin D per day if you are 70 or younger. If you are 71 or older, 800 IU of Vitamin D are recommended.
Protein also increases bone mineral density. The recommended daily protein intake is 0.4 grams per pound of body weight. So for example, if you are a 140-lb. woman, you would need about 60 grams of protein per day.
The recommendations above come from Johns Hopkins Medicine, but please consult with your physician before significantly changing your diet or taking supplements.
Keeping your back, chest, and core muscles strong can help prevent changes to posture. Be mindful of your body positions as you go about your day. Sit up straight in chairs, get up and move about frequently. Also, a physical therapist can give you advice and exercises to help.
Exercise is important for bone health and can help stimulate cells responsible for bone building. Weight-bearing exercises like walking, dancing, aerobics and hiking are good, along with resistance exercises using weights, elastic bands, body weight or water resistance to strengthen muscles and build bone.
Maintain a healthy weight, and do not smoke. The National Institute of Health states that “studies have shown a direct relationship between tobacco use and decreased bone density due to smoking itself or to other risk factors common to people who smoke.”
Also, chronic alcohol use has been linked to decreased bone health, as too much alcohol interferes with the balance of calcium in the body.
There is no cure for osteoporosis, but several medications are available to help with the disease in postmenopausal women and in men. The Mayo Clinic provides an extensive list and explanation of medications used in the treatment of osteoporosis.
Bone Density Testing
A bone density test uses X-rays to measure how many grams of calcium and other bone minerals are packed into a segment of bone. Physicians recommend a bone density test (for women or men) under the following conditions:
- Loss of height
- Bone fractures from causes like sneezing or coughing
- Long-term use of steroid medications like prednisone
- Drop in hormone levels (estrogen in women and testosterone in men)
How frequently you should have a bone density test depends on a number of factors such as your age, sex, medical history, your previous bone density test results, and whether you are taking an osteoporosis treatment.
For more information on osteoporosis, visit Bethesda’s health and wellness blog.
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