HEALTH Easy ways to build back better bones
A year at home has left us at greater risk of falls and fractures. Now, Green Goddess Diana Moran is hoping to help us reverse the effects of accelerated bone loss
The order to stay at home – and for the most vulnerable to shield – was followed strictly by millions of older people, many of whom barely went out for a year.
With new figures for the UK revealing a third of adults over 55 have been less active due to the pandemic, clinicians from the Royal Osteoporosis Society are preparing for a spike in the numbers of falls and fractures people suffer as restrictions ease and people start socialising once more.
And the Irish Osteoporosis Society estimates up to 300,000 people here have the condition.
Sarah Leyland, clinical adviser at the Royal Osteoporosis Society, says: “Lack of exercise and vitamin D during lockdown has created a perfect storm for bone weakening and falls risk, which can pose major issues when older people get outdoors again.”
Even before the pandemic, there were half a million fragility fractures every year in the UK, costing the NHS €5.2billion, with one in two women and one in five men over 50 expected to suffer a broken bone due to osteoporosis.
Shockingly, these fractures can follow minor injuries such as a simple fall.
Even a cough, a sneeze or a hug from grandchildren could trigger a painful spinal fracture for those with severe disease. Sarah says: “Fortunately, the living matter within bones can repair itself, with a healthy lifestyle including appropriate exercise and adequate vitamin D, speeding up the rate of recovery.
“That means we all have the power to strengthen our muscles and bones today and every day.”
Weight-bearing exercises are vital for bone health and reducing risk of fractures, yet in the UK three in 10 people over 55 say they are not confident that they even know what these exercises are.
That is why the ROS has teamed up with Diana Moran, aka 1980s icon the Green Goddess, to help remedy the effects of lockdown on older people’s bone health.
Diana is sharing he practical workout tips to get people moving again, build back bon strength and lower th soaring risk of falls an fractures.
“The health of our bones can make a big difference to our qual of life and independence after the age of 5 says Diana, now 82.
“The lockdowns we’ve endure have put many of us at peak risk fractures, but weight-bearing exercise can help rebuild our bon strength, getting us all set to retu to life outdoors again.”
It’s a condition Diana is all too familiar with. When she was in h early 60s, she was diagnosed wit basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer
Health of our bones can make a big difference to independence after age 50
which is easy to treat as long as it is caught early. But her brush with the disease means her days as a sun-worshipper were quickly curtailed.
Diana did not realise that this would put her at increased risk of vitamin D deficiency, which can lead to issues with bone health.
“After I was told I had osteopenia [a precursor to osteoporosis, where bones are weaker than normal] I decided it was important to find out everything I could about maintaining healthy bones and delaying osteoporosis. I’m sharing some simple activities today that could help others to avoid broken bones in the future.”
■■Diana’s book, Beating Osteoporosis, is available on Amazon. She also provides daily exercises for you to try on her website, keepfitandcarryon.com