If you think osteoporosis is essentially a post-menopausal disorder that strikes only women, check out what a new study by the National Orthopaedics Foundation (NOF), USA has to say: “In the year 2000, one in eight men over the age of 50 were diagnosed or suspected to have the disease. The ratio has now risen to one in four men.” The disease has nothing to do with gender, says the study, and its chances of onset increase with age.

The picture is no less different in India, where the number of osteoporosis cases in men has significantly increased over the years, specially in urban areas. A recent survey says that almost 24 per cent men over 55 in India are affected by osteoporosis or susceptible to having a related fracture in their lifetime.

Orthopaedists cite increase in life expectancy, sedentary lifestyle and malnutrition as key factors. “Indian men tend to eat a lot with hardly any physical activity. This leads to fat accumulation in the cells, thus affecting energy levels,” says Dr Ashish Dewan, orthopaedist, Orthonova Hospital, Delhi. Smoking, heavy alcohol consumption and long-term use of steroids also thins the bones.

Loss in bone mass in ageing men is another factor leading to osteoporosis. “Just like fall in production of estrogen causes loss in bone mass among women, decline in testosterone production, which generally occurs after 55 years of age (‘the male menopause’), reduces bone mass in men. Both hormones help in bone and muscle development. There is calcium depletion and low level of vitamin D. When the old bone tissue is disposed through the kidneys, vitamin D helps to reabsorb it. Lack of it disables the recycling of calcium,” explains Professor Dr PVA Mohandas, orthopaedic surgeon, MIOT Hospitals, Chennai.

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