This is a re‑airing of one of the most important episodes I’ve done — because postmenopausal osteoporosis is something I see every single week in practice, and most women don’t realize it’s happening until it’s too late.

If you’ve ever noticed your grandmother or mother getting shorter, developing a rounded upper back, or seeming more fragile over time, this episode explains why. After menopause — which happens on average around age 52 — estrogen levels drop, and that changes how your bones remodel. Bone resorption starts to outpace bone formation. In plain English? You lose bone faster than you build it.

That’s how osteopenia progresses to osteoporosis.

In this episode, I break down the difference between osteopenia vs. osteoporosis, what low‑trauma fractures really mean, and why hip fractures, wrist fractures, and vertebral compression fractures are such a big deal in older women. We talk about vertebral wedge fractures — the small spinal collapses that cause height loss, that classic “dowager’s hump,” and even reduced lung and abdominal space that can affect breathing and digestion.

Osteoporosis is often called a silent disease because you don’t feel bone loss happening. Most women find out after a fracture. And unfortunately, hip fractures especially can dramatically affect independence and long‑term survival.

The good news? Osteoporosis prevention is possible.

In this episode I walk through:

• How much calcium women actually need (1,000–1,200 mg daily)
• Safe vitamin D dosing (600–1,000 IU — and why more isn’t always better)
• Why adequate protein intake matters for bone strength
• The importance of weight‑bearing and resistance exercise
• Major osteoporosis risk factors
• How we diagnose bone loss with a DEXA scan
• How the FRAX score estimates 10‑year fracture risk

We also touch on estrogen and hormone therapy as part of the larger conversation around menopause and bone health — something I’ll cover more deeply in another episode.

If you’re postmenopausal, approaching menopause, have a family history of osteoporosis, or are wondering whether you need a DEXA scan, this is essential information.

Bone health after menopause is not cosmetic. It’s structural. It’s survival.

If this episode helps you, send it to your mom, your aunt, your sister — prevention works best when we start early.

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