Strong women, strong bones
- 01:00 pm - 02:00 pm
Host: ACC and Ministry of Justice
Presenters: Natalie Hardaker (ACC) and Christine Gill (Bone Health NZ)
Cost: FREE Registration: RSVP required, limited seats available; attendees must check in at reception, level 3 to be escorted to the meeting room.
Wellington
ACC and the Ministry of Justice are collaborating to bring you a session on the importance of Bone Health for Women.
Come and learn more about taking a proactive approach to bone health for you and your family.
How often do you consider your bones as part of your overall health?
Most people don’t really think about it until something doesn’t feel right. Bones do more than just keep everything in place. They provide support and structure, protect vital organs, help us move, and even store essential minerals.
Bone health is an important part of your general health and should be promoted at all ages. Building the right foundations for strong bones early in life is essential, and then looking after those bones, helps minimise or even prevent bone problems such as osteoporosis.
Women can be more at risk for poor bone health as they lose the protective effect of estrogen at menopause and begin to experience rapid bone loss. The biggest window of opportunity for building strong bones is childhood and adolescence but it’s never too late to start looking after your bones. The good news is, it’s not very difficult. Women can take action for healthy bones, muscles and joints and continue to lead active and independent lives in their senior years. In this session, we can learn more about bone-healthy diets and regular weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercises.
Research shows that bone health at age 65 is influenced by:
- Bone mineral density at time of skeletal maturity (peak BMD).
- Rate of age related bone loss – influenced by nutrition, exercise and lifestyle (alcohol, smoking).
- Regularity of menstrual cycle and age of onset of menopause in women.
Learn more
It’s also important to find out whether you have any personal risk factors.
‘Know your bones’ is a freely available online bone health self-assessment tool that generates personalised results, identifies risk factors and makes recommendations that can then be discussed with a GP or healthcare professional. The tool has been used successfully used in Australia and Bone Health NZ will be launching the tool right here in NZ.
Come and learn more about bone health for you and your family and the proactive approach you can take to looking after you bone health and minimising fracture risk.
