The new report Beat the Break: Know and Reduce Your Osteoporosis Risk Factors describes the common risk factors, both modifiable and fixed, that place people at greater risk of osteoporosis.

IOF Chief Executive Officer Daniel Navid noted: "By 2050, it is estimated that incidence of hip fracture, a major consequence of osteoporosis, will increase by 310 and 240 percent in men and women. Osteoporosis-related fractures often imply pain, loss of function and, in the worse cases, death."

Professor Cyrus Cooper, author of the "Beat the Break" report and IOF board member, said, "Worldwide, the incidence of osteoporosis is growing at epidemic proportions - we now know that one woman in three and one man in five over fifty will experience an osteoporotic fracture."

Beat the Break is also the theme of World Osteoporosis Day 2007, celebrated on October 20 with international activities in more than eighty countries. To beat the break and avoid fractures, IOF urges individuals to take the new IOF One Minute Osteoporosis Risk Test and to follow a bone-friendly lifestyle - with a nutritious diet including sufficient calcium and vitamin D, regular exercise, avoiding smoking and excess alcohol.

Modifiable risk factors for osteoporosis primarily arise because of unhealthy diet or lifestyle choices. They include poor nutrition, low body mass index, eating disorders, alcohol, smoking, and insufficient exercise.

Fixed risk factors are those that individuals are born with or cannot alter. They include age, gender, family history of fracture, the presence of a previous fracture, ethnicity, and the onset of early menopause. It is important to be aware of these fixed risks so steps can be taken to reduce loss of bone minerals.

WOD 2007 is supported by an unrestricted educational grant provided by four Global Gold Sponsors: Fonterra Brands, Novartis, MSD and Tetra Pak.

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The low-risk diet (high scores for the healthy dietary pattern) characterized by a high intake of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, fish and legumes, in combination with moderate alcohol consumption (5 grams of alcohol per day or less), along with the three low-risk lifestyle behaviors [not smoking, having a waist-hip ratio of less than the 75th percentile and being physically active], was associated with 92 percent decreased risk compared with findings in women without any low-risk diet and lifestyle factors, the authors write. This combination of healthy behaviors, present in 5 percent, may prevent 77 percent of myocardial infarctions in the study population.

Several components of fruits, vegetables and whole grains ”including fiber, antioxidant vitamins and minerals ”have been associated with a reduced risk for coronary heart disease, the researchers note. In addition, previous studies have found beneficial effects of small amounts of alcohol in preventing the buildup of plaque in the arteries, which could help prevent heart attacks.

Our study findings indicate that healthy dietary behaviors are present in the population, the authors conclude. These dietary behaviors together with a healthy lifestyle and body weight may prevent most myocardial infarction events.

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