How common is osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is a major public health problem that threatens over 40 million people in the United States.¹

• After a person hits his or her peak bone-building years, around age 30, the bones slowly begin to thin. This process accelerates after age 45 or 55. Osteoporosis most often affects people after age 65.
• Women generally have less bone mass than men and lose bone mass sooner and faster than men.
• Women are far more likely to develop osteoporosis than men.²
• Women of European and Asian ancestry are more likely to have osteoporosis than those of African ancestry.
• About 1 out of every 2 women and 1 out of every 4 men older than 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in their lifetime.¹
• 90% of hip fractures in older women are related to osteoporosis.³

Osteoporosis is rare in children and teens. Osteoporosis that occurs in children and teens usually is caused by other medical conditions or by taking certain medicines known to cause osteoporosis.

Citations

1. National Institutes of Health (2006). Osteoporosis overview. Available online: http://www.niams.nih.gov/bone/hi/overview.htm.
2. Anderson JJB (2008). Nutrition and bone health. In LK Mahan, S Escott-Stump, eds., Krause's Food and Nutrition Therapy, pp. 614–635. St. Louis: Saunders Elsevier.
3. Fiechtner JJ (2003). Hip fracture prevention. Postgraduate Medicine, 114(3): 22–32.