Skip to main content

Slight Body Mass Gains in Middle Age May Cut Later Fracture Risk

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on May 19, 2024.

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, May 17, 2024 -- People whose body mass index (BMI) slightly increases from normal weight to low-level overweight during 30 years of middle adulthood have a lower risk for fracture in later life, according to a study published online April 8 in Osteoporosis International.

Zihao Xin, from the Boston University School of Public Health, and colleagues examined the association between BMI trajectories over middle adulthood with fracture risk in late adulthood. The analysis included 1,772 participants from the Framingham Original Cohort Study.

The researchers found that compared with the BMI trajectory of group 4 (normal to slightly overweight), group 1 (overweight declined to normal weight) had a higher all-fracture risk after age 65 years (hazard ratio, 2.22). In a secondary analysis, a similar pattern was seen for lower-extremity fractures (pelvis, hip, leg, and foot).

"These findings emphasize the importance of maintaining a stable BMI throughout adulthood to reduce the risk of fractures in later life," coauthor Douglas P. Kiel, M.D., M.P.H., of the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research and Hebrew SeniorLife in Boston, said in a statement. "For overweight individuals, strategies to avoid bone loss during periods of weight loss during middle adulthood could be beneficial in terms of reducing fracture risk. This is especially true with the recent increases in the use of the new obesity drugs."

One author disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Mortality in Rheumatic Heart Disease Is High

FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- Mortality related to rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is high and is correlated with the severity of valve disease, according to a study published online June...

Higher County-Level Prostate Cancer Screening Tied to Better Outcomes

FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- Higher county-level prevalence of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening is associated with lower odds of advanced disease, all-cause mortality, and...

Metabolic Impact on Offspring Similar for Frozen, Fresh Embryo Transfer

FRIDAY, June 7, 2024 -- For glucose and lipid profiles during early childhood, the impact of frozen embryo transfer (FET) is comparable to that of fresh embryo transfer, according...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.