Bones to protect after 60, and why these five

An adult skeleton has 206 bones, and a baby is born with around 270, many of which fuse as they grow. Most of them will never give you a moment's trouble.

A small number account for nearly all the serious consequences after 60, because of where they sit and what they let you do. Knowing which they are makes prevention feel less like a vague instruction and more like protecting something specific.

The thigh bone is the strongest bone in the body, which tells you something about what it takes to break one. A hip fracture is the injury that most often changes a life rather than interrupting it: hospital, surgery, a long recovery, and a great many people never return to the independence they had before it.

This is the one behind almost all fall-prevention advice, and it is why leg strength and balance matter more than they sound like they should.

Spinal fractures are different from the others because they often happen without a fall at all. A weakened vertebra can simply compress under everyday load, sometimes without a dramatic moment to point to.

What follows is gradual and easy to mistake for ordinary ageing: losing height, a rounded upper back, persistent back pain, and eventually less room for the lungs to work in. If someone has lost noticeable height or their posture has changed, that is worth mentioning to a doctor rather than accepting.

This is the one that comes first. Falling forward, the hand goes out, and the wrist takes the whole weight. It is often the earliest fracture of the group and frequently the first real sign that bone has been thinning quietly for years.

A broken wrist is rarely life-changing in itself, and it is worth treating as a warning rather than bad luck. It is the moment to ask about bone health, not simply to wait for it to heal.

These two get talked about least and cause more difficulty than people expect. The upper arm bone breaks readily in a sideways fall, and a shoulder you cannot use makes dressing, washing, cooking and reaching almost impossible, all at once.

The pelvis is what you stand, walk and balance on. Pelvic fractures in older adults can take months to settle, and that length of reduced movement costs muscle and confidence on its own.

The encouraging part is that you do not need five different plans. Every one of these breaks in the same circumstances: a fall onto bone that has thinned.

So the protection is shared. Stronger legs and better balance mean fewer falls. Weight-bearing movement, enough protein and calcium-rich food keep the bone underneath more able to take a knock. Safe floors, decent light and sensible shoes remove the trips in the first place.

This page is for understanding what is at stake, not for diagnosing yourself. Any concern about your own bone health belongs with your doctor.