Menopause & Bones

The other elephant in the room for women, is the risk of osteoporosis, or bone thinning in menopause. We know that oestrogen protects from osteoporosis. Women with an early menopause or surgical menopause are recommended HRT to protect their bones and hearts. A fractured neck of femur affects approximately 1/3 women and 1/5 men over 80. 10% will sadly die within 1 month and about 1/3 will die in the first year following from a fractured neck of femur, and we know that HRT for even a few years around menopause reduces the risk of having a fractured neck of femur. Oestrogen dropping, does not just affect our spines and hips, but also the bones in the face. If women have an MRI scan aged 20, 40 and 60, we can see the bones of the face, jaw and chin get smaller. This means that we actually have less scaffolding and support for the soft tissues of the face, and the soft tissues present as a heaviness along the jawline, known as jowls, and as deeper lines from nose to mouth (nasolabial folds) and from mouth concerns to jaw (Marionette lines).

How to help

I recommend all of my patients to take Vitamin D supplementation as we do not have enough sunlight to produce the amount we need to protect our bones in the UK. It is worth assessing your diet to be sure you have enough calcium intake too.

Weight bearing exercises such as walking, jogging, jumping all help put impact through our skeleton which encourages bone strength.

Strength training, even with just body weight with squats, and press ups can also help your musculoskeletal system.

If you are at risk of osteoporosis, so have had an early menopause, have a family history of osteoporosis, have suffered from fractures or been on several courses of systemic steroids then you should ask your GP to consider testing you for osteoporosis with a DEXA scan.