Calcium Osteoporosis

The mineral that is found of most abundance in our body is Calcium of which 99.5% of it is found in our bones. And being that bones are what make up a person’s endoskeleton, having healthy bones is very important. Unlike exoskeletons, an endoskeleton will grow as a person reaches full maturity. And even when fully developed an adult’s skeleton needs Calcium in order for that person to maintain healthy bones and teeth. Not getting sufficient levels of calcium can lead to osteoporosis, or porous bones. Only 50-60 % of adults and 10-25% of adolescents in the United States get a sufficient amount of Calcium in their bodies.

So what causes this debilitating condition? There are two reasons as to why Calcium levels are low in the body. One is a diet that is poor in Calcium consumption. The other is the body’s inability to absorb the mineral. When this mineral content level is low the body tends to retrieve it from the bones. Normally the body returns the Calcium to the body when it becomes available. But when this becomes a continued trend osteoporosis occurs in the bones. The bones become brittle and are susceptible to breaking. This is not uncommon in elderly people. Bone thinning is a natural part of the process of aging. Even though it does occur, this bone degeneration can be prevented or slowed. Although this condition has been mentioned as common in older people there are cases of osteoporosis in prematurely aged bones. Yes it does occur in younger people.

It is known by scientists that estrogen is protective which explains why osteoporosis is more prevalent in women. If a woman’s body has sufficient levels of estrogen available to the body, the risk are much lower. There are opportunities for this malaise to manifest itself even for younger females. In the 4th week estrogen levels are much lower and therefore bones are provided less protection during that period of time. Clearly estrogen is the essential catalyst in prevention. And this is the major problem in the post-menopausal stage of women's lives. The estrogen levels are permanently decreased. It is not known exactly how estrogen protects against the degeneration of bones but statistics show that estrogen levels and Calcium Osteoporosis are crucially tied together.

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