Building Stronger Future: Safeguarding Your Income on World Osteoporosis Day with Disability Income Protection Insurance

On World Osteoporosis Day, today 20th October, we need to recognise the grim statistics that worldwide, one in three women and one in five men, aged 50 years and over, will suffer an osteoporotic fracture.

(illustration by International Osteoporotic Foundation)

Osteoporosis can cause disability and disability can also lead to osteoporosis. Osteoporosis causes bones to become weak and fragile, so that they break easily. Fractures caused by osteoporosis can be life-threatening and a major cause of pain and long-term disability.

World Osteoporosis Day (WOD) is meant to create awareness about osteoporosis, by encouraging people to do bone density checks which led to early detection of osteoporosis and hopefully prevention of its consequences. Apart from regular bone density testing especially as we grow older, one should also adopt healthy lifestyle habits. Regular walking, adequate exposure to sunlight, consuming a diet rich in fruits, nuts and vegetables, incorporating Resistance training in one’s exercise regime, ensuring Calcium and Vitamin D levels are adequate and reducing alcohol and tobacco use all go a long way in warding off osteoporosis. It does not cure Osteoporosis but it helps mitigate against the risk of fractures and hence also aids in preventing disability.

Both men and women are affected by osteoporosis, but post-menopausal women are much more vulnerable. Hence, Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is given to most of these women to reduce the risk of both fractures and bone loss. 

The most common sites for fractures due to osteoporosis are the hip, the wrist and the spine. Fractures in these sites can cause disabilities of various extent and can also prevent people from working.  The score from a bone mineral density (DXA) scan is known as a T-score.  A T-score of 0 means that one’s bone mineral density is the same as a young, healthy adult.  A T-score of -2.5 or below is a sign of osteoporosis , especially in the lumbar spine, the femoral neck, the hip and the wrist bones. 

According to S Srakocic, “osteoporosis is not considered a disability on it’s own, but when osteoporosis causes symptoms or complications that affect a person’s everyday life such as repeated bone breaks or chronic pain, it can lead to disability qualification.”

Similarly, patients with disabilities are at a higher risk for developing osteoporosis primarily due to two reasons. Firstly, if their disability limits their physical activity making them less likely to build and maintain bone mass through muscle- strengthening and weight-bearing activities and secondly because certain medications like steroids that they take due to their necessary for disabilities may also contribute to bone loss. 

Fractures due to osteoporosis have a debilitating and devastating effect on millions of people all over the world and the associated disabilities result in huge burgeoning costs to insurance companies, governments, and healthcare providers.

Disability leads time off from work, leading to loss of pay. Disability income protection insurance helps to insure an individual from the risk of loss of income due to disability (physical/mental) due to any disease, accident or illness. This creates and acts as a safety net for individuals for people with osteoporosis and osteoporosis related disabilities. It provides financial assistance to maintain existing lifestyle, meet monthly expenses as well as provides for certain degree of loan protection, depending on the policy chosen.

On this World Osteoporosis day, let us pledge for “Strong bones, strong future!”

More about Dr Neil:

Dr Neil is an accomplished Radiologist with more than 25 years of experience in the medical field. He’s also done his MBA from the University of Western Australia. He is currently based out of Perth, Australia.

References:

1. NIH Osteoporosis and Related Bone Diseases National Resource Center. Bone mass measurement: What the numbers mean. National Institute of Athritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. Updated October 2018. Accessed April 18, 2022. https://www.bones.nih.gov/health-info/bone/bone-health/2020;31(12):2271–2286. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00198-020-05497-

2. New York State, Department of Health. Publication 1990, Version 2/2015. Revised August 2015