Can your body size predict your future risk of bone fractures? Past research shows this to be the case with hip fractures, but what about other fractures? A study, published in the July 18 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, examines the relationship between body size and fractures in elderly women.
Specifically, this study questions whether smaller-framed women are at greater risk for fractures of the pelvis, rib, arm, elbow, ankle, wrist and foot. Results indicate that women with a small body size, compared to women with a large body size, are at a higher risk for certain fractures.
Researchers from Minnesota and California analyzed data on 8,059 non-black women age 65 and older. The women were followed for an average of 6.4 years. Measurements recorded during this time included body size (weight, weight change since age 25, body fat and body mass index) and bone mineral density, or BMD (an index of the amount of calcium in bone). Participants were also periodically asked whether a fracture had occurred.
Women classified as “small body size” weighed less than 127 pounds and women classified as “large body size” weighed more than 161 pounds.
Bones contain minerals, such as calcium, and these minerals are the building blocks that enable us to bear weight. Bone thinning, or osteoporosis, occurs when calcium is depleted from the bone. This bone thinning increases one’s susceptibility to fractures.
The present study’s BMD measurements are important because when a woman enters menopause, she produces a significantly lower level of the hormone estrogen. This lower level of estrogen negatively influences the body’s calcium level. Post-menopausal women, therefore, are at an increased risk for calcium depletion, a lower BMD and subsequent fractures.
Findings from this study show that women with small body sizes had the highest risk for hip, pelvis and rib fractures, but not for the other parts of the body examined. The authors concluded that if a BMD measurement is not available, a woman’s total weight is a useful measure for assessing her risk for hip, pelvis and rib fractures.
“Our results suggest that measurements of other attributes of body size or composition do not provide clinically relevant information about risk for hip, pelvis and rib fracture beyond that provided by weight,” the study authors noted. “Our findings support current recommendations to include low weight as a risk factor for these fractures in screening and treatment decisions.”
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