Smoking is one of the factors that cause people to suffer bone loss. Smoking increases your chances of developing osteoporosis and of breaking bones as a result of this disease.
One reason why is that smoking decreases the amount of calcium absorbed from food.
just the facts
A recent scientific study showed that the bones of teenage girls who smoke are less dense than the bones of nonsmoking girls of the same age.
definition
Osteoporosis is a disease in which the bones become fragile because some of the bone tissue is lost. The bones stay the same size, but their density and strength decrease. People with osteoporosis can break their bones very easily; they are especially likely to break their hip, spine, and wrist bones.
Every day some bone naturally breaks down and new bone is formed in a process called bone remodeling. In people who have osteoporosis, the amount of bone broken down is greater than the amount of new bone formed. That's why the amount of bone decreases.
explanation
Ten million Americans have osteoporosis. Most of them are older people. However, the loss of bone that leads to osteoporosis doesn't just happen in old age. It starts when people are relatively young and continues over a very long period of time. To prevent osteoporosis, it is important to build up strong bones as a child and teenager and to avoid factors that cause excessive loss of bone later in life.
Smoking is one of the factors that cause people to suffer bone loss. Smoking increases your chances of developing osteoporosis and of breaking bones as a result of this disease.
One reason why you're more likely to develop osteoporosis if you smoke is that smoking interferes with your body's handling of the mineral calcium. Calcium is essential for strong bones. Your body obtains calcium from the food you eat, especially milk and other dairy products. The calcium is absorbed from your digestive tract into your bloodstream, where it travels to your bones and is used in bone remodeling. Smoking interferes with this process by decreasing the amount of calcium absorbed from food. This means that less calcium reaches your bones.
Smoking may stop teenagers from building up as much bone as they should. A recent scientific study showed that the bones of teenage girls who smoke are less dense than the bones of nonsmoking girls of the same age. As a result, girls who smoke during their teenage years may be more likely to develop osteoporosis later in life.
