Mr Hartsuyker said more than 65,000 people in the electorate of Cowper have poor bone health, according to research from Osteoporosis Australia.

“This is a significant number of people in our community who are facing significant bone health challenges,” Mr Hartsuyker said.

“Poor bone health can lead to osteoporosis which makes bones become brittle, leading to a higher risk of fractures and potential loss of mobility.

“Any bone can be affected by osteoporosis. Unfortunately, too many preventable fractures are occurring and we need to focus on turning this around, through healthy lifestyles and talking to your local health professional.”

The most common problem sites are the hip, spine and wrist.

Osteoporosis Australia encourages people around Australia to use the Know Your Bones online self-assessment tool at http://www.knowyourbones.org.au/, which was developed in conjunction with the Garvan Institute of Medical Research to help people to better understand their risk.

Gold Logie Award Winner, Kerri-Anne Kennerley said it is very important that Australians are aware of their bone health.

“I was blessed with strong bones, although my mother has had osteoporosis, but having taken drugs to fight breast cancer, those drugs leached my bones so I found myself osteopenic, which is the stage before osteoporosis,” Ms Kennerley said.

“I wasn’t keen to take more drugs so spent a year working with weights and exercise and plus taking a supplement and glad to report it has stabilised.  Find out early and be aware is my best advice.”

Osteoporosis currently affects more than 1.2 million Australians, with a further 6.3 million having low bone density.  75 per cent of affected Australians are women.

Sydney Olympic Gold Medallist, Cathy Freeman OAM, encouraged residents to regularly exercise to improve their overall health as well as their bone health.

“As with many chronic conditions, prevention is better than cure. Regular exercise, in particular weight bearing and resipiscence exercise and activity plays an important role in maintaining healthy bones.

“Exercise is recognised as one of the most effective lifestyle strategies to help make bones as strong as possible, reducing the risk of fractures later in life,” Ms Freeman said.

An Australia a bone will be broken every 3. 3minutes due to poor bone health and there will be an estimated 160,000 fractures this year alone.

“It was great to have Cathy and Kerri-Anne come to Parliament House to help raise awareness of Osteoporosis and encourage residents of the Mid North Coast to Know Your Bones,” Mr Hartsuyker said.

Osteoporosis Australia Chief Executive Officer, Greg Lyubomirsky said: “Understanding your own bone health and knowing what your bone density is will help prevent fractures.  Think calcium, vitamin D and exercise.  I’d encourage more Australians to join the already 100,000 people who have gone online and used the simple self- assessment tool Know Your Bones.”

Osteoporosis Australia Medical Director, Professor Peter Ebeling AO said: “A broken bone is usually a sign that we need to take action to prevent more bone loss, as each fracture significantly raises the risk of a further fracture.”  

Key Facts

Two-thirds of Australians over 50 have poor bone health

75 per cent of these affected Australians are women

In 2017 the brittle bones of Australians aged 50+ is expected to cost the economy $3.1 billion

By 2022 there will be 6.2 million Australians aged 50 years or older with osteoporosis or poor bone health

The total cost of osteoporosis, poor bone health and fractures over the decade from 2012 to 2022 is expected to be $33.6 billion

Osteoporosis Australia (OA) is a national not-for-profit organisation responsible for providing osteoporosis information and services to the community and health professionals.  Osteoporosis Australia is focussed on building strong bones for a life without fractures.  For more information regarding OA, contact https://www.osteoporosis.org.au/