Bones in your body are living tissues that constantly break down and replace themselves with new material. With osteoporosis, your bones break down faster than they regrow. This causes them to become less dense, more porous, and more brittle. This weakens your bones and can lead to more fractures and breaks. There’s no cure for osteoporosis, but there are treatments to help prevent and treat it once it’s diagnosed. The goal of treatment is to protect and strengthen your bones.

Treatment usually includes a combination of medications and lifestyle changes to help slow the rate of bone breakdown by your body, and in some cases, to rebuild bone.

Most people have their highest bone mass and density when they’re in their early 20s. As you age, you lose old bone at a faster rate than your body can replace it. Because of this, older people are at a higher risk of osteoporosis.