Relationship between women's occupational work and bone health: a study from India

Physical activity is known to influence the bone mass of an individual. Few studies have examined the effect of occupational activities on bone health. The present study investigated the relationship between occupational activities and the bone parameters measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	British journal of nutrition Vol. 99; no. 6; pp. 1310 - 1315
Main Authors:	Shatrugna, Veena, Kulkarni, Bharati, Kumar, P. Ajay, Balakrishna, N., Rani, K. Usha, Reddy, G. Chennakrishna, Rao, G. V. Narasimha
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01-06-2008
Subjects:	Absorptiometry, Photon Adult anthropometric measurements Biological and medical sciences Bone and Bones - physiopathology Bone Density Bone mineral density Construction industry Developed countries Diet Exercise Feeding. Feeding behavior Female Femur Neck - physiopathology Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology Humans India Low income groups low income households Lumbar Vertebrae - physiopathology Malnutrition Nutrition Occupational activity occupational exposure Occupations Osteoporosis Osteoporosis - physiopathology Pelvic Bones - physiopathology Phosphatase Physical activity Poverty Spine Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems weight-bearing exercise women Women, Working Womens health India Asia United States > US Bone mineral density Physical activity Nutrition Occupational activity Osteoarticular system Physical exercise Human Vertebrata Mammalia Health Bone mineral density: Physical activity: Occupational activity: Nutrition Female Bone Feeding
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Summary:	Physical activity is known to influence the bone mass of an individual. Few studies have examined the effect of occupational activities on bone health. The present study investigated the relationship between occupational activities and the bone parameters measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in 158 women from a low-income group in India. Women involved in three occupations with different bone-loading patterns (beedi (cigarette) makers, sweepers and construction workers) were included in the study. Anthropometric parameters, parity and percentage of menopausal women did not differ significantly between the three groups and dietary intake of Ca was low in all the groups. Bone mineral density (BMD) values of the overall group at all the sites were much lower than those reported from developed countries, possibly due to different body sizes in these regions. Femoral neck and hip BMD were not different in the three groups in spite of marked differences in activity patterns. However, bone area in the femoral neck was higher in the beedi makers compared with sweepers probably due to the squatting position adopted by beedi makers. Lumbar spine BMD was significantly lower among the sweepers when compared with the beedi makers and the groups performing walking and weight-bearing activities (sweepers and construction workers) had a higher prevalence of osteoporosis in the lumbar spine. However, weight-bearing effects of the upper body due to a squatting position were associated with better lumbar spine BMD in the beedi makers. The present study thus indicates that undernutrition might affect the relationship between occupational activities and bone parameters.
Bibliography:	Abbreviations: ANCOVA, analysis of covariance; BMC, bone mineral content; BMD, bone mineral density istex:B91D098F0723B794D0E2894ECA0C425379F4C3C7 ArticleID:86850 ark:/67375/6GQ-TWDMZ2ZZ-1 PII:S0007114507868504 ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-1 content type line 23 ObjectType-Article-1 ObjectType-Feature-2
ISSN:	0007-1145 1475-2662
DOI:	10.1017/S0007114507868504