Lee Swanson Research Update

Vitamin B-12 and Hip Bone Loss

June 2004

bone health

Are your vitamin B-12 levels low? It could be a sign of greater susceptibility to hip bone fractures.

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, initiated a study to "test whether low serum vitamin B-12 levels are associated with more rapid bone loss in women." They checked serum levels and measured calcaneal bone mineral density (BMD) in community-dwelling white women aged 65 and older, who participated in the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures. The calcaneal is the largest of the tarsal bones and is situated at the lower and back part of the foot, forming the heel.

BMD of the hip and subregions was measured two years later. Repeat measurements of calcaneal and hip BMD were obtained after almost six years and three and a half years of follow-up, respectively.

Serum vitamin B-12 checks were performed in 83 randomly selected participants with initial and repeat measurements of BMD, who were not taking estrogen replacement therapy at the time of the study.

Researchers found that women with vitamin B-12 levels at or below 280 picograms (pg)/ml experienced a total change of -1.6% in total hip BMD, compared with -2% in women with levels above 280 pg/ml. A picogram is one-trillionth of a gram. Results were similar when subregions of the hip were analyzed separately.

As a result, scientists concluded that while serum vitamin B-12 levels were not significantly associated with calcaneal bone loss, low serum vitamin B-12 levels were associated with increased rates of hip bone loss in elderly women.

The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism89(3):1217-1221, 2004

New to Natural Health?
Tools
Customer Service