Did you know that osteoporosis is a degenerative bone disease more common than diabetes, stroke and heart disease combined? It affects 25 million women in the United States -- one in five women over the age of 45 and four in 10 women over the age of 75.

While bone loss is a natural part of aging, osteoporosis -- which is a decrease in bone mass and strength that causes susceptibility to fractures -- is not! Osteoporosis weakens the skeletal system by blocking your bones' ability to absorb calcium. Without calcium, your bones become brittle. So brittle, in fact, that you could break your back by just sneezing or break your hip by merely stepping off a curb.

My colleague Raymond Jablonski, M.D., is medical director of the Radiology Department at SSM St. Joseph Health Center. He says that what causes osteoporosis is unclear, but that what is clear is that it is preventable. The key to prevention, Dr. Jablonski says, is knowing the risks associated with the disease and taking steps to avoid them, whenever possible.If two or more of the following risk factors apply to you, you may be at risk for osteoporosis:

• being female
• being Caucasian or Asian in origin
• being very fair skinned
• being small boned
• being over 35 years old
• a family history of osteoporosis
• having your ovaries removed
• going through menopause
• being thin or underweight
• smoking
• drinking excessive alcohol
• consuming a lot of caffeine
• limiting milk and cheese in your diet
• getting very little exercise

Do some of these risk factors surprise you? Most people think of osteoporosis as an "old person's" disease and neglect building up bone mass at an early age. Before the age of 35, it's possible to build up bone mass which you can then draw from later in life. After age 35, increasing bone mass becomes more difficult.

Regardless of your age, eating foods rich in calcium and getting plenty of weight-bearing exercise (which means working your muscles against gravity with activities like walking, stair-climbing, tennis and dancing) will help keep your bones strong.

Dr. Jablonski says low adult bone density can be detected by bone mineral density (BMD) testing, which is available at St. Joseph. These tests use small amounts of radiation to determine the bone density of the spine, hip or wrist, and then results are compared with the average BMD of healthy young women at their peak bone mass. The information can help your doctor diagnose osteoporosis or determine whether you need to take certain steps to protect your bone health.

If osteoporosis is diagnosed, treatments are available that can increase bone density and reduce the risk of fracture. Talk with your doctor about any questions you may have about osteoporosis or call the SSM Health & Wellness Line at 940-7475 (in St. Charles, St. Peters and O'Fallon), 327-7475 (in Wentzville and Lake Saint Louis) or 456-7475 (in Warrenton).

Hank Clever, M.D., is a well-known pediatrician in the St. Charles community. After retiring from private practice in 1998, Dr. Clever has continued to speak to community groups and organizations about a variety of health-related topics. He can be reached for speaking engagements by calling SSM St Joseph Health Center at 947-5621.

The Doctor Is In can be found in the St Charles Post each Monday. If you have questions you would like addressed by Dr. Clever, you can write to SSM St Joseph Health Center, 300 First Capitol Drive, St Charles, MO 63301.