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Risk factors
Some risk factors for osteoporosis, such as advancing age, can't be changed. For more on these, see below. For those risk factors you can change, such as calcium intake, see our section on prevention.
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Gender: Women over the age of 50 have the greatest risk of developing osteoporosis. Women experience rapid bone loss during and five to 10 years after menopause, since menopause decreases the production of estrogen, a hormone that protects against excess bone loss. Osteoporosis is less common in men, but 20 percent of all hip fractures do occur in men.
Age: Your risk for osteoporosis increases as you age.
Race: Caucasian and Asian women are more likely to develop osteoporosis.
Bone structure and body weight: Petite and thin people (body weight less than 127 pounds) have a greater risk of developing osteoporosis because they have less bone to lose than people with more body weight and larger frames.
Family history: If your parents or grandparents have had any signs of osteoporosis, such as a fractured hip after a minor fall, you may have a greater risk of developing the disease.
Medications: Certain drugs, including some corticosteroids and anticonvulsants, result in side effects that may damage bone and lead to osteoporosis.
Testosterone: Men with low levels of this hormone are more likely to develop osteoporosis.
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