Moderate drinking good for bones: Study
POSTED March 5, 2009 - 16:55 | POSTED BY Shikha Patial
Last edited by Harpreet Bhagrath on March 5, 2009 - 17:38
Boston, March 5: There are several virtues in moderate drinking. Adding to the list, a new research has discovered another benefit of moderate intake of alcohol; for bones this time.
Scientists at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University have found a link between regular moderate intake of alcohol and bone mineral density (BMD).
Regular moderate alcohol intake was seen to improve BMD in men and post-menopausal women aged above sixty, researchers said.
Researchers found that one to two drinks of beer, or wine a day increases mineral density. In contrast, those who consumed more than two servings of liquor daily had lower BMD.
“Previous research suggests that moderate alcohol consumption in older men and post-menopausal women may protect against BMD loss, a major risk factor for osteoporosis," said Katherine L. Tucker, PhD, corresponding author and director of the Dietary Assessment and Epidemiology Research Program at the USDA HNRCA.
"Our study also looks at the possible effects of the three alcohol classes, beer, wine and liquor on BMD," she added.
The study measured BMD, taking it from three hip sites and the lumbar spine, in 1,182 men, 1,289 post-menopausal women and 248 pre-menopausal women. All the subjects had been the part of Framingham Heart Study.
Participants were asked to fill in a dietary questionnaire, where they reported their alcohol intake in terms of one serving of beer (356 mL), one serving of wine (118 mL), and one serving of liquor (42 mL).
Adjusting factors like silicon intake or calcium intake, which may have effect on BMD, researchers analyzed effect of alcohol intake on BMD.
A strong link was seen in case of men who consumed one or two servings of alcohol per day and had greater hip BMD than that of non-drinkers. Those who reported having consumed more than two servings had weaker hip and spine BMD.
However, Prof. Tucker cautioned, “No one should depend solely on alcohol to maintain bone health.”
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