To think osteoporosis is shockingly sidelined by healthcare professionals in the UK

[Pavementworrier]

My mum was recently diagnosed. That in itself isn't such a shock - the bigger shock was that the treatments available are pretty limited with potentially significant side effects. And now I think about it there are things we should all be thinking about to try to limit our own risks. It's easy to forget when young that strength starts with our bones.

More than half of women in the UK will have an osteoporotic fracture and there is risk even if you never have vitamin d deficiency (which almost all of us will at some point). Some medication and food/drinks can put you more at risk but this is never taken into account in prescribing.

Reading today about the plan to give puberty blockers to 200 kids and then follow them for four years. Four years is not enough - osteoporosis is a huge risk of adjusting adolescent hormones and the people conducting the study have a duty to the children for the rest of their lives. What measures will be taken to monitor and protect their future skeletons? I bet none.

Anyway if you are reading this, however old you are, please think about vitamin d supplements, regular exercise and strength training and taking a dexa scan in your forties.

HRT supposedly offers great protection - I am 44 now and not sure when to start for best effect. My periods are irregular but otherwise I feel fine. Would be great if someone would start taking this disease seriously and work out the optimal starting moment!

You need to do some research. The old "dairy" is best is not correct. You get minimal calcium from milk and yoghurt.

Possibly the medical profession needs to do more research but I personally do not. The world of dietary advice is full of half baked ideas and I do not have the time or energy to filter well-established truths from faddy notions based on one research study which is later contradicted.

I do not accept that me fannying around on the Internet is going to result in better results than the advice from my doctor or the Osteoporosis Society.

You are coming across as rather arrogant. Why are you on these forums if you are not looking for advice?

@Pavementworrier thank you so much for starting this thread - I have learned so much from it. Mumsnet at its best.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in June and had treatment over the summer. I have been put on hormone- suppressing tablets which can contribute to osteoporosis as a side effect, so I was fast-tracked for a DEXA scan to give a baseline status of my bones. I got the results within in a week - the letter simply said that the scan showed signs of osteoporosis already - no further detail about where or how bad it is.

I have been told that it will be 5-6 months before I see anyone from the specialist osteoporosis team to get blood tests and potentially have treatment. Seems like I am back in the NHS slow lane after the very speedy cancer diagnosis and treatment. Like everyone else, I will try to take care of myself with adjustments to diet, exercise and supplements and the info on this thread will definitely help.

YANBU - osteoporosis care definitely is a Cinderella service in the NHS. I can't help but contrast the bright shiny buildings, speedy service and charity-supported staff and facilities I encountered during cancer treatment with the dilapidated and neglected hut I attended for the DEXA scan - but the radiography staff were lovely and doing their best.

I received my diagnosis in a regional breast care centre in Edinburgh and had my operation in a major acute hospital in Central Scotland. I had radiotherapy in a specialist cancer hospital in Glasgow. I also had support from Macmillan nurses, the Maggie centre and lots of leaflets from Breast Cancer Now. I can see where all of the fundraising money goes.

Thanks for the tip to ring the Royal Osteoporosis helpline. I saw a senior radiographer today for a checkup and feedback. I had hoped that she might access my records to give me more details about my osteoporosis, but she couldn't/wouldn't because she is treatment radiographer, not a diagnostic radiographer. She advised that I speak to my GP.

So you don't think that "You need to do some research." comes across as arrogant? Oh well, you do you.

I don't recall asking for advice though of course I'll gratefully pick up any useful tips. I joined this discussion to share experiences with other women and I also shared some information that I found useful.

I'm not sure that's true. Are you suggesting other foods are better than dairy or that only supplements are enough? They also have the added benefit of containing protein.

In a list of the calcium content of foods on the international osteoporosis Foundation dairy products have more calcium per portion than any other foods?

The vibration plates are in the January sale - do they have any other benefits apart from bone density

Vibration plates and their benefits are full of nuances. Their impact on young bones compared to post-menopausal women is very different. The type of vibrations also matters. Vertically is good, horizontally is not. Many studies have shown no benefit, the ones that did had a magnitude 0.3g to 0.4g at 30 HZ.
So check the specs of any machine you buy.

Thanks for this. I use the vibro plate at our local gym, mainly standing. I do sometimes manage to stretch my legs across it.

I'm in Fife.

I advised a fellow gym-goer to contact ROS - she's been fobbed off by her GP to the extent that she was unaware that there is an osteoporosis specialist in Fife - a female rheumatologist who had to fight for funding for osteoporosis treatments.

I’m finding it helpful with loosening my frozen shoulder and chronic lower back pain. I’m sleeping better. There’s also something to do with lymphatic drainage which is supposed to be A GOOD THING, but I can’t remember why 🤣

I used Spire medical, as the NHS would not refer me. After the event, my GP said that they should have referred, (no refund offered, of course) but that I’d be referred back to Spire every two years. That was 2 1/2 years ago- not a whisper 🙄

Hi OP,

Hope you don't mind us popping our head round the door (again!) to flag that on Thursday we've got an AMA with two specialist nurses from the Royal Osteoporosis Society - we though it might be of interest to users on this thread. You can post your questions here.

Thanks,
MNHQ

Thanks for the heads up!