Broken hearts increase the risk of broken bonesMay 25, 1999Feeling lonely or unhappy increases the risk of hip fracture in elderly people, shows a study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. The finding was independent of the amount or type of psychotropic drugs, such as tranquillizers and hypnotics, being taken. Over 18,500 women over the age of 50 were followed up for three years in one county of Norway, during which time 329 sustained a hip fracture. The 10 per cent of women with the highest scores on a mental distress index had double the risk of hip fracture of the 10 per cent of women with the lowest scores. The index included questions relating to loneliness, life satisfaction, sleep disorders, anxiety and mood. The finding was independent of traditional risk factors associated with hip fracture, such as weight, smoking, inactivity and illness. Significantly, those women who were taking tranquillizers, hypnotics, or sedatives every day also doubled their risk, compared with those not taking any
medication. But when their mental state was taken into consideration, the risk halved: previous research has tended to emphasise the importance of the medication, rather than the state of mind. The authors suggest that mental distress might increase the risk by provoking unhealthy behaviours, such as poor diet or smoking. Increased levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, are known to adversely affect bone tissue, they say. AlphaGalileo Foundation | |||||||||||||||||||||
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