2009: Bringing More Health and Nutrition Information to You

Wednesday, January 7

As we’re getting back into the groove of structured days and regular routines after the Holidays, I look forward to bringing you another year of quality, evidence-based nutrition advice and education.      

The Hoffman Center nutrition lectures for this year will be starting around mid-February.  The first topic will be osteoporosis.  What is it?  Osteoporosis, or porous bone, is a disease characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone tissue, leading to bone fragility and an increased risk of fractures of the hip, spine, and wrist.  Men as well as women are affected by osteoporosis, a disease that can be prevented and treated with nutrition. 

As I get this presentation ready, here are some facts from the National Institutes of Health:

• Osteoporosis is a major public health threat for 44

million Americans, 68 percent of whom are women.

• In the U.S. today, 10 million individuals already

have osteoporosis and 34 million more have low

bone mass, placing them at increased risk for this

disease.

• One out of every two women and one in four men

over 50 will have an osteoporosis-related fracture in

their lifetime.

• More than 2 million American men suffer from

osteoporosis, and millions more are at risk. Each

year, 80,000 men have a hip fracture and one-third of

these men die within a year.

• Osteoporosis can strike at any age.

• Osteoporosis is responsible for more than 1.5 million

fractures annually, including 300,000 hip fractures,

approximately 700,000 vertebral fractures, 250,000

wrist fractures, and more than 300,000 fractures at

other sites.

• Based on figures from hospitals and nursing homes,

the estimated national direct expenditures for

osteoporosis and related fractures total $14 billion

each year.

This is indeed a serious public health concern, if not an emergency.  Stay tuned to www.drhoffman.com for more information on this very important upcoming lecture.