The effect of a 12-week exercise programme on bone mineral density in young South African females

Abstract

A longer lifespan has increased the emphasis on bone health, which is often compromised with age. Studies have shown that exercise yields a positive influence on bone mineral density (BMD), especially when done during the early years of life (second to third decades). A 12-week study was undertaken using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) to assess changes in BMD (total, lumbar and neck of the femur) in 70 females (mean age 20.1 years) before and after a 12-week intense exercise programme. The exercise programme consisted of a daily 5 km run and two isolated resistance exercises for each body region. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to determine if any changes took place after the intervention. Statistically significant increases occurred in only the BMD of the lumbar spine (L1-L4) (2.54%) and neck of the femur (NOF) (9.35%), with clinical significance shown only in the NOF, as the increase was greater than 7%. This study's results thus indicate that a relatively short intense intervention of 12 weeks can improve BMD in young women, thereby possibly assisting in preventing osteoporosis and fractures later on in life. Further studies are recommended to determine the minimum time needed to achieve a clinically significant change in the total BMD as well as the lumbar spine BMD.

Association between lifestyle and pathologic fractures in patients admitted to surgery departments of selected hospitals affiliated to Alborz University of Medical Sciences in 2014–2015

“…According to the results, healthy people were physically more active than those with pathologic bone fractures, and there were usually sports activities in their daily schedule. These results are consistent with Christos et al ,[7] Egbunikei et al ,[8] Langsetmo et al [9] and Winklmayr et al [10]…”

The effect of education based on based health belief model on osteoporosis and bone mineral density among women

“…In a study of Egbunike et al [40] to the effect 12-week program of exercise on BMD femoral neck, BMD significantly increased.…”

The Application of PRECEDE Model on Preventing Osteoporosis in Women

“…In another study investigating the effect of exercising on bone density, body balance, and self-efficacy of women revealed that compared to the control group, bone density in the femur and body balance were significantly enhanced in the intervention group; however, self-efficacy of two groups was not changed (Jessup, Horne, Vishen, & Wheeler, 2003). Egbunike et al (2009) investigated the effect of a 12-week exercise program on BMD of the neck, waist and femur in 70 women aged from 18 to 22 and indicated a significant increase in BMD of the waist, neck, and femur of studied subjects after intervention. Cohen et al (2013) indicated that family-based intervention causes the enhancement of bone density of subjects.…”

“…The tool used for gathering data was a questionnaire for evaluating demographic information (age, body mass index [BMI], job status, educational level, household income, number of deliveries, consumption of tobacco production, and family history in osteoporosis) and constructs of PRECEDE model. This questionnaire was arranged based on other similar studies (Babatunde et al, 2011;Egbunike et al, 2009;Ghaffari et al, 2012;Jeihooni et al, 2015;Khani Jeihooni et al, 2017;Madureira et al, 2010;Tabasi Nejad et al, 2018). Twenty-five questions were asked about knowledge of osteoporosis and prevention behaviors and each correct answer had a score of 1 and each incorrect or "no idea" answer had a score of 0.…”

“…Physical activity is suggested as a nonmedical intervention for increasing bone density at young ages and preventing the reduction of bone density in middle age. Osteoporosis is preventable and the important factor in osteoporosis prevention is recognizing the ideas, lifestyles, and daily habits of people for improving the quality and efficiency of their lives (Egbunike, Wood, & Grant, 2009). Therefore, teaching prevention behaviors, such as physical activities and proper nutrition, as a simple and effective method has a great effect on prevention of this disease.…”