2nd-Hand smoke: Bad for the bones

Dramatic results from a mainland China study have confirmed the association between inhaling second-hand smoke and increasing your risk of contracting the bone disease osteoporosis.

BBC News reports that a study presented at a recent meeting of the International Osteoporosis Foundation meeting in Toronto showed that pre-menopausal women tripled their chances of getting osteoporosis if they were regularly exposed to passive smoking, and even men - whose osteoporosis rate is four times less - increased their risk.

The study, conducted by a team of scientists from the Harvard School of Public Health, examined 14 000 men and women in rural China who lived with at least one person who smoked every day.

They found that a pre-menopausal woman who lived with one smoker doubled her osteoporosis risk. If she lived with two more smokers, the risk tripled, BBC News reports. The women also had a 2.6 times greater risk for a non-spine fracture, compared to non-smokers, the researchers found.

If calcium intake is not sufficient, osteoporosis may result. And while it is most often associated with post-menopausal women, more and more research indicates osteoporosis can occur much earlier in life. – (HealthDayNews)

Read more:
Stop smoking Centre
Osteoporosis Centre

August 2006