May is National Osteoporosis Prevention Month. Read on.....

Lela is a 5 foot 10 inch 125 pound fashion model from Scandinavia. Everyone thinks she has the most marvelous

She doesn't.

She's building a portfolio for osteoporosis.

Her 30 year old cheekbones are to die for, but not her . Too many diets and too little calcium have left her bone density below average. If she doesn't do something soon her spine will contract, her clothes won't fit and, eventually, looking up at the sky will be impossible.

One in two women (fifty percent) and one in eight men over age 50 will get osteoporosis. If you do, there is a fifty percent chance you will sustain a fracture. If that fracture is in your hip there is a one in five chance you will be dead from complications within a year. Most people who survive the complications of a hip fracture never walk unaided again and many of them go from the hospital to a nursing home.

When I was young snacks included milk. Too often, today's children ask for juice or other sweet drinks that do nothing for the important bone building process. If you're a parent, think pro-actively. Make milk and milk products an important part of your child's diet. Don't tell them to stop running. Instead, run with them. Exercise regularly and don't smoke and you'll model a behavior that can save your child's life.

If you're in your teens or twenties and aren't active, it's not to late to begin the eating and exercise habits that can continue to increase the density of your bone until it is fully formed in your mid-thirties. Don't emulate the dangerous dieting behavior practiced by models and movie stars. It almost guarantees poor health later in life. If you're already in your 30's, 40's or 50's, exercise and a balanced and varied diet that includes milk and calcium and Vitamin D supplementation is your best defense against the ravages of this disease. (One tablet in the morning and one in the evening.) If you're a pre- or post-menopausal woman, be sure to get a bone density test (DEXA Scan). This test accurately measures bone mass and compares it to the average density of women at peak bone mass. If your scan shows no significant changes in your bone mass you're on the right track. If not, talk to your doctor about the new bisphosphonate drugs that can replace lost bone.

Osteoporosis isn't caused by aging. It's caused by ignorance. Last week, someone in one of my audiences reminded me this is true when she insisted that milk is poison. It's not. Sadly, reporters and book authors thrive on sensational, misleading stories and that say you don't need milk after you've been weaned or that you can get all the calcium your body needs from vegetables. That's not true.

Osteoporosis is a silent disease. Most people are surprised to learn it kills more people than all cancers combined. It's a killer that you can stop. Do it now.

P. S. For an update on osteoporosis, including supplementation recommendations, a walking exercise program, review of osteoporosis risk factors, strategies to prevent and treat the disease and a comprehensive list of resources that can make you a wiser consumer, buy SMART WOMEN, STRONG BONES, (more than 25,000 copies sold).