Osteoporosis, an age-related bone disorder characterized by an increased susceptability to fractures, affects 28 million Americans, 80% of whom are women. Because we are living longer today than at any other time in history, osteoporosis is more common than ever before. The expected lifespan for children born today is nearly 80 years for girls and 74 years for boys. In other words, women still have more than one-third of their lives to live after menopause. Almost one-half of all women over the age of 50 will experience bone fractures due to osteoporosis. One-third of women aged 65 and older have vertebral (spinal) fractures, the most common break caused by osteoporosis.

Most women don't realize that they might have osteoporsis until a bone fracture occurs, because the disease progresses so slowly. Once a fracture does occur, osteoporosis is a painful, disabling, and often devastating disease. Bones are formed over a lifetime, with peak bone mass achieved by the late thirties or early forties. Age-related bone loss is a universal phenomenon, beginning around menopause. Peak bone mass, therefore, is a crucial factor in a woman's ultimate risk of developing osteoporosis.

There are seventeen major factors that increase your risk for osteoporosis. Their relative importance depends on your age--the single most important factor. Bone loss is a normal part of the aging process, but we can slow that loss by reducing or eliminating risk factors throughout each stage of the life cycle. The following questionnaire includes these seventeen risks associated with osteoporosis.

Heredity Factors

1.Do you consider yourself to be either Caucasian or Asian?

Yes
No

2.Do you have a family history of osteoporosis?

Yes
No

Women-Only Factors

3.Did you begin having your period (menarche) at age 14 or older?

Yes
No

4.Are your menstrual cycles irregular?

Yes
No

5.Did you experience menopause at age 45 or younger?

Yes
No

6.Do your reproductive years (menarche to menopause) total 30 or less?

Yes
No

Body Shape Factors

7.Are you small-boned?

Yes
No

8.Do you have a high proportion of fat to muscle?

Yes
No

9.Are you underweight for your height?

Yes
No

Physical Factors

10.Are you physically inactive?

Yes
No

Prescription Factors

11.Are you estrogen deficient (post-menopausal, not on hormone therapy)?

Yes
No

12.Are you taking medications that increase the loss of calcium?

Yes
No

Lifestyle Factors

13.Are you a smoker?

Yes
No

14. Do you drink alcohol (> 1 drink/day for women, <2 drinks/day for men)?

Yes
No

Nutrient Factors

15.Is your diet high in protein?

Yes
No

16.Is your diet high in sodium and salt?

Yes
No

17.Is your diet low in calcium?

Yes
No