Osteoporosis is often referred to as the "silent disease", because it often remains undetected until the time of the first broken bone.

One in two women and one in five men over the age of 50 will break a bone mainly because of osteoporosis – three million people with, or at risk of the disease in the UK.

This month, the Dairy Council is highlighting the importance of building and maintaining strong and healthy bones.

Sarah Leyland, helpline manager of the National Osteoporosis Society says: "The best combination for protecting bones is an adequate calcium intake, teamed with vitamin D and weight-bearing exercise."

The Dairy Council recommends having three portions of dairy each day (3-A-Day) in order to meet calcium requirements. The most recent diet and nutrition survey suggests that one in eight boys and one in four girls aged 11 to 14 years, as well as one in 10 boys and one in five girls aged 15-18 do not get enough calcium.

Making sure we get enough calcium in adulthood is also important, even after the age of 35, when we begin to lose bone. If you think you are at risk, see your GP. If you have already broken a bone after a minor bump or fall, you may have osteoporosis. Other warning signs include height loss and curvature of the spine.

Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) scans measure the density of bones and is available at Sunderland Royal.

At Sunderland Royal, a one-stop shop for sufferers has been developed in the past year with a dedicated bone clinic.

This means that anyone referred by their GP can be scanned to measure the density of their bones, see a consultant and be given treatment all on the same visit.

Dr Terry Aspray, consultant in metabolic medicine and care of the elderly, said he and his colleague, consultant rheumatologist, Dr David Wright are working with consultant orthopaedic surgeon Mr Tony Cross.

Dr Aspray said: "There's some exciting developments in new treatments.

One million people have got osteoporosis and don't know they have got it until they break a bone. The practical thing is to prevent this.

It's an exciting time in both treatment and prevention.

"We are able to offer those people who can't take tablets treatment into the veins, as well as surgical treatments that are minimally invasive.

"What we are developing is consolidating what we are providing in a one-stop shop and have come a long way in the last year."Dr Aspray said anyone could find out their individual risk assessment by logging on to the FRAX website.

The National Osteoporosis Society runs a helpline staffed by specialist nurses 0845 450 0230.

Big Brother star Nikki Grahame

It came as the shock of her life to Big Brother star Nikki Grahame to be told she had osteoporosis – 30 years too early – because of her anorexia.

The frail blonde, 25, was diagnosed with acute osteoporosis – thinning of the bones – which usually hits women in their 50s.

It means her bones are much more likely to break if she has a fall, and she could end up in a wheelchair. The disease is attacking her spine and hip.

After being diagnosed, Nikki admitted: "I've got the bones of a 60-year-old woman. It's self inflicted, a consequence of my anorexia. The doctors want me to take oestrogen, but it makes me put on weight and have mood swings.

"I just have to be careful. I don't want to think about the worst that could happen."

Fearing it will get worse as she gets older, Nikki regrets not heeding the warning given by her doctor when she was 12.

She said: "He told me I was going to get osteoporosis and I wouldn't be able to have children. I wish I'd listened."

Nikki, who livened up last year's Big Brother with spectacular temper tantrums, previously admitted to suffering with the eating disorder.

She said: "It started when I was seven. I was a baby but I wanted to be the skinniest girl in the class. All I would eat was a few cubes of fruit salad, three cups of fluid, low-fat yoghurt or a dry piece of toast. I was obsessed."

At her lowest point, she weighed just two-and-a-half stone and had to be force-fed through a tube to keep her alive after she slipped into a coma.

Earlier this year, her weight had plummeted to six stone and she now has to go for regular scans and take super-strength calcium pills every day.

Most sufferers are given oestrogen tablets to combat the disease, but Nikki had to be taken off them because they made her moody and tearful.

That came as a real blow. And she confirmed that she's never had a period in her life, adding: "Ultimately, this means I can never have children as my ovaries have never developed."


Read more in today's Echo