Osteoporosis in young women is driven by extreme dieting

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Young women weakened by osteoporosis,

Extreme dieting puts bone health at risk

- Lower female hormone levels from extreme dieting can bring on early menopause and cause osteoporosis

- Being underweight is not necessarily good for the joints; a healthy weight stimulates bone and increases bone density

From one meal a day and intermittent fasting to three-day juice cleanse diets, interest in dieting runs high among many women regardless of the season. But excessive dieting carries a high risk of nutritional imbalance and osteoporosis, so caution is needed.

Extreme diets undertaken without adequate nutrition — single-food regimens, one meal a day, intermittent fasting and the like — can lead to osteoporosis caused by insufficient calcium intake. Osteoporosis is commonly regarded as a condition of old age. Bone density, which indicates the strength of bone, peaks in the twenties and thirties and then declines by about 1% each year. Even at a young age, however, underweight women need to be alert to osteoporosis. 

Director Shin, Jong Seung, an obstetrics and gynecology specialist at St. Peter’s Hospital, warned of the dangers of indiscriminate dieting to lose weight: “If extreme dieting that ignores nutritional balance, including essential nutrients, continues over a long period, hormonal imbalance can cause irregular menstruation, and in extreme cases there is a possibility of early menopause with declining female hormones. When estrogen decreases, calcium and minerals leach out of the bones, so even young women can experience accelerated loss of bone density.” Director Shin added, “If you have a history of extreme dieting, or are underweight or receiving hormone therapy for reduced ovarian function, checking your bone density through regular osteoporosis testing is essential regardless of age.” Middle-aged women going through menopause should have an osteoporosis screening once a year. 

Insufficient calcium intake lowers bone density and causes osteoporosis

The body maintains balance with the calcium it takes in through food. Calcium accounts for about 1.5-2% of body weight; 99% of it makes up the skeleton and teeth, while the remaining 1% dissolves as calcium ions in the blood and cellular fluid to regulate physiological functions. When calcium intake is insufficient, the body draws on the calcium stored in bone to make up the shortfall, which ultimately reduces bone density and results in osteoporosis, in which bone looks as though holes have formed within it. 

With osteoporosis, prevention matters more than treatment, and early treatment is difficult because there are no distinct symptoms. Left untreated, osteoporosis can lead to fractures. A fracture is a joint injury in which a bone breaks or is displaced by an external impact, and it occurs commonly in osteoporosis patients with weak bones. 

Patients with osteoporosis easily fracture the spine, wrist and hip on impact. Elderly osteoporosis patients with reduced balance commonly break a wrist bone by putting a hand out to break a fall while walking, or fracture a hip in the fall itself.   

Yang, Kyu Hyun, orthopedics specialist and Director at St. Peter's Hospital, explained, “If you do not build bone density sufficiently while young, osteoporosis can appear early as you age. Rather than blindly following whatever diet is in fashion, you need exercise and dietary control suited to you.” 

To maintain bone density, get enough calcium along with vitamin D, which aids calcium absorption, and moderate excessive meat and sodium intake, since these increase calcium excretion. Exercising regularly to build muscle strength and balance also reduces the risk of falls and fractures. 

On this point, Yang, Kyu Hyun, orthopedics specialist and Director at St. Peter's Hospital, said, “It is true that being overweight strains the joints. But that does not mean being underweight is good for them. An appropriate weight actually stimulates bone and increases bone density.” 

Weight-bearing exercises such as walking, squats, lunges, light dumbbell lifting and push-ups build muscle mass while reducing bone loss, helping to prevent osteoporosis.