The prevalence of osteoporosis increases with an ageing population. But it won’t increase equally between the sexes
DR MICHELLE GRIFFIN Michelle is the director of MFG Health Consulting, as well as a women’s health expert and strategy advisor in women’s health tech.
COMMENT
The world’s population is undergoing an enormous shift because the average person is living longer. According to the World Health Organization, in 2020 there were more people aged 60 and over, than there were children under five. In the UK, there are more than 11 million people aged 65 or over and in 10 years this will have increased to 13 million, equivalent to 22 per cent of the population. Due to this demographic change, an often-ignored health condition – especially in women – is gaining attention: osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis is a disease that causes bones to break more easily. Worldwide, it’s responsible for almost nine million fractures each year and it’s estimated that one in three women over 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture at some point.
It’s all due to age-related changes in our bones.
Special cells in our bones called osteoblasts are responsible for forming new bone tissue, while cells known as osteoclasts dissolve old and damaged tissue so it can be replaced with new, healthier tissue. A key factor in bone health is the ratio between the activity of these two cells.
Up until the age of 30, there’s generally more osteoblast activity, so we’re building more bone than we’re losing. This doesn’t mean we’re growing additional bones, just that our osteoblasts are building new bone tissue – remodelling existing bones and healing damaged ones by laying down the structure to be filled by bone matrix (the calcium, collagen and other substances that form the mass of our bones).
But when we hit 35, our bone quality and density begin to decrease as osteoclast activity starts to take over. This results in a small loss, approximately one per cent, of bone tissue each year.
This loss significantly increases in women post-menopause, when the level of oestrogen produced by the body has dramatically decreased. The drop in oestrogen is thought to result in a reduction in the number of osteoblasts and an increase in osteoclast lifespan, so they remain active for longer.
A condition called osteopenia can arise when bone density drops below a certain level. And if this continues
