There is a clear understanding that when you ...

Real men get osteoporosis, too. Like many in 2000000 American men already have osteoporosis, thinning of bones, which makes bones brittle and porous and prone to fractures. Twelve million people at risk, and perhaps the first signs of bone loss and low bone density is called osteopenia. But given that four lasix no prescritpion times more women osteoporosis, men rarely end up with thin bones than women. Why is it lower risk? "Women live longer because they are more likely to get osteoporosis," says Paul Mystkowski, MD, endocrinologist Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle and clinical professor of the University of Washington in Seattle. And because men tend to be more physically active throughout his life, he says, men are less prone to bone loss, as the work has been shown to protect bone density. But there is much difference in male osteoporosis. "In general, osteoporosis in men is a symptom of something else," says Mystkowski ", while in older women is almost always in postmenopausal women."

And for many people, "something" is hormonal. The most common cause of osteoporosis in men is testosterone deficiency, says Mystkowski. "There's a clear consensus that if you evaluation of men with osteoporosis, you always have to assess the deficiency of testosterone," he says. For low testosterone men, doctors may recommend testosterone for bone formation. The dilemma is that science has not shown how many bones potential advantage is the direct effect of testosterone - or from the conversion of testosterone into estrogen. "Probably the bulk of the benefit is testosterone," Mystkowski says, "but it is important not to minimize the role of testosterone in estrogen conversion."

Men also need a small amount of estrogen, says Mystkowski. Estrogen maintains bone density - in men and women. In fact, all people normally convert testosterone to estrogen for the formation of bone mass. "If you look at people who do not have the enzymes to even small amounts of estrogen, because they are genetically born this way," says Mystkowski ", they get osteoporosis. If you give them estrogen improves their osteoporosis. So, although estrogen does not matter "t circulate in very high concentrations in men is an important factor for bone health."

Bones continuously grow throughout their life in a natural process, called the repair, the old cells in the bone shattering and new bone cells growing to replace them. But that new bone, your body needs large amounts of calcium and vitamin D. "This is a giant construction project," says Mystkowski. But without enough calcium and vitamin D, you can not build a framework for new bone and bone density change strongly with calcium and other minerals. .