Bones are one of those bits in our body we usually don’t think much about. It is easy to think of them as being a bit like steel rods that hold our bodies upright and are moved by the actions of our muscles. They also encase vital structures such as our brain, spinal cord, heart and lungs. What people easily forget is that bone is living tissue. Bones, like muscles, get stronger when we load them.

Weakness in bones is called osteopenia when it is mild and osteoporosis when the weakness is more significant. 66% of adults over 50 have either osteoporosis or osteopenia. This increases your risk of fractures from trauma such as falls or compression fractures of the spine from lifting.

Sport and weight bearing exercise when we are young helps our bone density as we age but we need to continue to do weight bearing exercise and muscle strengthening exercise to strengthen our bones. Balance exercises reduce our chances of falling. Good treatment post fracture can reduce re-fracture rates from 20-70%.

Bone health matters. As Physiotherapists we can help keep you moving, assist with balance control, muscle strengthening and advise on bone health.

Published in ” The Village Observer”, December, 216. Written by Burns Bay Physiotherapy.