During menopause, your ovaries stop producing the hormone oestrogen, which has significant effects on your bones. Immediately after menopause, you will experience a period of rapid bone loss that can last for 4-8 years. Most bone loss occurs in the first three years after menopause, then the rate of bone loss slows.
Also at midlife, your body becomes less efficient at absorbing calcium from food and your kidneys become less efficient in conserving calcium, creating a state of potential calcium loss in the blood. Your body compensates by drawing calcium out of your bones.
After menopause, therefore, it is more common for women to develop osteoporosis - a condition in which a loss of bone mass and strength makes bones more fragile and more likely to break.
To find out how you can protect yourself, check out www.bonehealthforlife.org.au/life-stages/midlife.
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