A study has shown that more women die from Osteoporosis every year than from breast cancer. The numbers compared at 48,000 to 40,996 annually. As a young sufferer of Osteoporosis at the age of 21, I find this shocking and a little disheartening. My question to America is, “why are we not making this a bigger issue?” There is not enough awareness or education on the prevention and dangers of Osteoporosis. Most people don’t even know what Osteoporosis is, and if they do, they think it is just something that happens to elderly people. While it is most common in the elderly, it can happen to younger adults as well. Take me for instance. I battled a decade long eating disorder, and then I was diagnosed with Osteoporosis at the age of 19. I was still a teenager when I received my diagnosis. What is absolutely devastating about this disease is that it is usually very preventable. Once you have it, it is irreversible. We need to spend the same amount of time that we spend on breast cancer awareness, for Osteoporosis awareness. Since it is normally completely preventable, then why don’t we do a better job on educating on Osteoporosis prevention? Awareness alone could save thousands of lives every year! We have 10 million people in the United States alone diagnosed with Osteoporosis, a potentially life-threatening disease. Thousands and thousands of these people will die next year. It could be your mother, your aunt, your sister. It could even be me. Let’s reduce the number of deaths associated with Osteoporosis! There are great organizations such as the National Osteoporosis Foundation, and the National Bone Health Alliance with great resources and information on treatment and prevention.
We have a say in the prevention of this disease. Let’s save lives!
By: Syanne Centeno www.syannecenteno.wordpress.com