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Does Salt Cause Osteoporosis?

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Refined salt can cause osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a condition involving the thinning of bones(bone demineralisation), leaving them brittle and more susceptible to fracture. 99% of calcium is stored in the bones, so sufficient calcium is important in order to maintain or reach peak bone mass(PBM). Osteoporosis mainly effects the older population, with 19.8 million people over the age of 50 in the UK. The older population are more at risk of osteoporosis because bones naturally become thinner as we got older. Post-menopausal women are particularly at risk of osteoporosis because of the decrease in the female hormone, estrogen. Those with higher salt intakes are increasing the amount of bone demineralisation that takes place. Studies have also demonstrated that there is a correlation between salt intake and calcium excretion in young and adolescent girls. It has been suggested that this may result in a reduced peak bone mass, which would increase the risk of osteoporosis later in life. Consuming a low salt diet during adolescent years may therefore be important, to reduce the risk of osteoporosis later in life. A high salt intake increases calcium losses in the urine(calciuria), some of which will be directly from the bones. One study found that …show more content…

Recently, a study showed sodium to be a major linking factor between blood pressure and osteoporosis. The authors found that hip and spine Bone Mass Density(BMD) were inversely correlated with a higher sodium excretion, the higher the salt intake, the lower the BMD. They concluded that the increase in calcium excretion is obligatory as a result of the increased sodium in the diet(Fig 2). Another study showed that a 20mmHg increase in blood pressure is associated with 0.28mmol/day increase in urinary

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