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Despite recent gains in the awareness and treatment of osteoporosis, millions of Americans who have the disease remain undiagnosed and untreated and may learn of their condition only when they suffer a fracture, according to a new study. The research group estimates fewer than half of the people who have with osteoporosis have been identified.
Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones become more fragile and prone to break. The study found that 3.5 million patients visited their doctors last year for osteoporosis treatment, compared with just half a million a decade ago.
About 10 million Americans have osteoporosis and 34 million more are at risk, but the weak bones that characterize the condition often go unnoticed until they fracture, most frequently in the hip, spine or wrist. Among the older people (mainly women) most susceptible to osteoporosis, this can present major problems. One cause for concern: As prescriptions for newer anti-osteoporosis drugs have increased, the use of calcium supplements has decreased.
Nevertheless, you don't have to take drugs or calcium to get healthy. One of the best things you can do if you have low bone density is increase your consumption of vegetables. Vegetable juicing is a great way to do this that will also normalize high levels of acid in the body. Vegetable juice is also high in vitamin K (phylloquinone), which serves as the biological glue that helps plug calcium into your bone matrix.
Vitamin K is a crucial part of bone health, but most people do not get enough of it from diet alone unless they juice vegetables or eat large amounts of dark green leafy vegetables.
Science Daily July 28, 2004