Knowing how to prevent osteoporosis is the key to healthy and strong bones that are not prone to breakage and fractures. It is best to prevent or delay osteoporosis rather than wait until the disease manifests before treating it.

1. Know your risk factors

Being of advanced age, having a shorter physical frame and smaller bones and having a family history of the disease puts a how-to-prevent-osteoporosiswoman at higher risk of the disease. Also those who binge drink and smoke are more likely to have falls related to osteoporosis. Also if you have had a fracture earlier in life, you could be at higher risk.

Certain medications such as some steroids also increase risk. If you know the risks of the disease and see that you have some of them then you should educate yourself better about how to prevent osteoporosis.

2. Exercise

Many exercises will help strengthen your bones. Weight bearing exercises such as walking, jogging, jumping rope, stair climbing, dancing and so on are good for the bones. In addition, stretching exercises help keep the body flexible so include some quality stretches in your exercise program.

Learning exercises such as yoga, tai chi, Pilates and so on is a good idea for many reasons: they improve flexibility and also body balance, which goes a long way in preventing falls which are the main culprit for broken bones in old age.

3. Eat a nutrient rich diet

Eat foods that are rich in calcium, such as low fat diary, leafy greens and whole grains. Fish is also good because of its vitamin D content (vitamin D is necessary for the absorption of calcium). You can add calcium to your diet by having soy products and also having juices and other foods that are fortified with calcium. As for the vitamin D, just 10 minutes of sun exposure a day will give you what you need.

4. Manage stress

You may not think that managing stress is important for how to prevent osteoporosis, but it is. Stress causes the body to produce the hormone cortisol, and when there are elevated levels of this in the blood for long periods of time, it can weaken the matrix of the bones. Also if you need to take corticosteroids to manage the condition, this could further weaken the bones.

5. Avoid foods that leach calcium from the bones

Salt is a known culprit that causes calcium loss from the body. Also certain soft drinks, particularly colas are known to leach calcium from the bones because of the phosphorus contained in them.

6. Get a bone density test

A bone density test will tell you how strong your bones are. Doing a blood test will tell you more about how to prevent osteoporosis because it will tell you what your osteoblasts level is (responsible for future bone development). Based on this information, a doctor will be able to tell you the best course of action and what supplements you need to start on.
Read more at http://www.womenhealthzone.com/general-health/osteoporosis/how-to-prevent-osteoporosis/