Women's Health
What You Need to Know About Hip Health
By
Sep 21, 2008 - 2:12:07 PM

(HealthNewsDigest.com) - More than 352,000 people in the U.S. suffer hip fractures each year, 90 percent as a result of a fall (American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons). And the arrival of fall brings an opportunity for women to learn more about a leading, yet often overlooked, women's health risk associated with falls - hip fractures, which are often fatal.

Awareness and concern of the risks associated with it remains low, according to Donnica Moore, M.D., nationally renowned women's health expert and president of the Sapphire Women's Health Group.

"Having healthy hips is vitally important to anyone who wants to live a healthy, active life," she says. "However, there is still room for most women to educate themselves on hip fracture and how to lower their risks."

Only 25 percent of hip fracture patients over 50 will make a full
recovery; 50 percent will require the use of a cane or walker, and 24 percent of those will die within one year (AAOS).

According to a recent survey commissioned by GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare among women aged 45 to 64, 80 percent of those polled said that they do not worry about hip fracture. Also, although 92 percent noted that hip fracture could lead to the loss of ability to walk properly or at all, many did not realize some other serious consequences associated with it. In
fact, only about one out of three realized that death is also a
possible risk.

Adequate calcium intake is one of the best defenses against hip
fracture. A person's body must maintain a constant level of calcium in the blood to function, and when the body's intake level is too low, it meets its
needs by stealing calcium from bones, weakening them over time. Many people assume they take in enough calcium, but the majority of Americans (nearly 75 percent of women and 50 percent of men) do not get enough in their diet, according to the USDA.

Vitamin D is equally important to bone health since it's not only
essential for calcium absorption, but also plays an important role in keeping muscles active and strong; some studies have shown that getting enough vitamin D can also help prevent falls. And like calcium, many people do not get enough.

More than 70 percent of women 51 to 70 and almost 90 percent of women over 70 are vitamin D deficient.

"Even when women try to get enough calcium and vitamin D through diet, it's still usually not enough," says Dr. Moore. "Women can make simple
choices in order to take a more active role in managing their bone health, and taking a calcium supplement like Os-Cal is a great first step."

To bone up on their knowledge of hip health and share vital
information with others they care about, women across the country are coming together online to do the "bump" - the iconic '70s dance in which people bump hips to the beat of the music - at www.oscal.com/bumpitup. This new online
resource helps women learn more about the risks of hip fracture and how to protect their hips, featuring hip fracture facts, ways to reduce risk, questions to ask the doctor, information about calcium and vitamin D and useful tools like a calcium calculator and a fracture risk calculator. Each woman
who "bumps" hip health information to a friend will receive a downloadable $3 coupon for any Os-Cal product (the #1 doctor- and
pharmacist-recommended calcium supplement). Visitors to the site can also enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to Hollywood, where they just might "bump" into a favorite celebrity.

For further information: www.oscal.com/bumpitup

www.HealthNewsDigest.com

© Copyright by HealthNewsDigest.com