Doctors warned that the nation’s elderly population, which stood at 2.6 million people last year, or 11.53 percent of the total population, is prone to osteoporosis, with patients confined to their beds facing a higher risk as lying prone causes an average loss of 25 percent of the bones’ calcium content every six months.
The Taiwanese Osteoporosis Association said the probability of developing osteoporosis grew higher as one grew older, adding that one out of every five people suffered from the disease.
Association supervisor Huang Chao-shan (黃兆山) said that with advancing age, elderly people are increasingly confined to their beds.
Lack of exercise, either due to loss of limb function or other conditions, also causes osteoporosis, Huang said, adding that the rate of calcium loss could be compared with astronauts who remain in zero gravity conditions for too long.
Acting director of National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) department of geriatrics and gerontology Chan Ding-cheng (詹鼎正) said he once had a 74-year-old patient surnamed Chen (陳) who fell and broke her thigh during rehabilitation after being in bed for half a year after suffering a stroke.
On comparing her bone density from before her time in bed to after, rates went from negative 2.1 to negative 3.1, Chan said.
If a patient is bed-ridden for 11 weeks consecutively, there is about a 5 percent decrease in their bone density, Chan said, adding that patients lose 25 percent of their average bone density if they are confined to bed for six months.
Lack of activity puts these people at high risk for bone fractures due to osteoporosis, Chan said, adding that even if their bones heal from fractures, they are not as strong as before.
NTUH department of orthopedic oncology and spinal surgery director Yang Rong-sen (楊榮森) said that regular exercise can not only train muscles, but also promote healthy bones.
Weight-bearing impact exercises are closely affiliated with bone density, but elderly people may want to take a gradual approach, Yang said, adding that lifting bottles filled with water or stretching elastic bands would help.
Chan suggested a balanced diet with foods high in protein and calcium — such as milk or soybean milk — as well as a healthy intake of foods high in vitamin D, such as egg yolk, fish or vegetables.
Chan also suggested a healthy amount of exposure to sunlight, adding that people in nursing homes should pay special attention to replenishing their vitamin D and their calcium intake.
The Taiwanese Osteoporosis Association and the Wang Jhan-Yang social welfare Foundation have cooperated on the prevention of osteoporosis and promotion of health for high-risk groups program since last year.
Both organizations plan to emphasize how exercise can prevent osteoporosis and bone fractures through classes.
The program also hopes to provide useful information both through physical pamphlets and through its Web site, the organizations said, adding that more information could be found on www.facebook.com/WJY.Osteoporosis.
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