The Human Skeletal System And Disease

928 Words4 Pages
The human skeleton is an incredible thing. It is the literal support system for each individual. It is the reason humans are not just a pile of tissue on the ground. It gives structure which gives the physical appearance people are so use to when seeing when viewing each other. The skeletal system is comprised of two hundred and six bones (Kleine ND). These bones can be classified by their different shapes, as well as can dissected based on their composition. The types of bones include flat, irregular, long, and short bones. The first type, flat, is described as being very then and somewhat curved. This includes most of the bones in the cranium, as well as the ribs and sternum. The second type, being irregular, is anything that doesn’t…show more content…
One such disease is osteoporosis. This disease occurs in more women than men and is genuinely found in individuals of a more advanced age. While this can occur from a variety of things, including just being a thin person as well as just taking particular medicines, it can also be predetermined due to your family history, as well as just being of white or Asian descent. Several people can live with the illness for years before realizing they have it. Nearly half of the population over the age of fifty will break a bone because of this silent disease (National Library of Medicine 2014). This disease thins bone to the point of no longer being able to properly support the victim, which is the reason for the breakage. While this can be out of the range of control, there are several things people prone to the disease can do to lessen their chances of getting it. This includes a diet rich in vitamin D and calcium, not smoking, avoiding certain medications like glucocorticoids and improper balance of thyroid hormone, and increasing physical activity, which increases bone mass over time, can help decrease the chance of developing osteoporosis, as well as lessen the effects of those already affected. Victims may also take bisphosphonates to slow bone loss. To check for the disease, bone density can be tested by using a dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) of the hip. There are not varying points of the disease, but the precursor to it is osteopenia, so those with this should start working toward saving the bone density that they still have. While there is no cure, once steps are taken, either pre or post diagnosis, the disease can be slowed (National Institutes of Health

More about The Human Skeletal System And Disease

Open Document