The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 NewsACR Convergence
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Psoriatic Arthritis Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
    • Interprofessional Perspective
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Axial Spondyloarthritis Resource Center
      • Psoriatic Arthritis
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / Mediterranean Diet Tied to Lower Hip Fracture Risk

Mediterranean Diet Tied to Lower Hip Fracture Risk

March 29, 2016 • By Andrew M. Seaman

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

(Reuters Health)—Women who maintain an overall healthy diet may benefit from a slightly reduced risk of hip fractures later in life, according to a new U.S. study.

You Might Also Like
  • Healthy Diet Linked to Lower Hip Fracture Risk in U.S. Women
  • After Hip Fracture, Earlier Osteoporosis Drug Initiation Tied to Lower Subsequent Fracture Risk
  • Osteoporosis Drugs Tied to Lower Fracture Risk & Health Costs

Women who followed a Mediterranean-style diet were about three tenths of a percent less likely to break a hip over about 16 years, compared to women who didn’t follow the diet, researchers found.

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Because the Mediterranean diet doesn’t emphasize a lot of dairy, which is usually a good source of calcium and vitamin D, it’s noteworthy that it doesn’t actually boost the rate of hip fractures, said lead author Dr. Bernhard Haring, of the University of Wurzburg in Germany.

A Mediterranean-style diet emphasizes fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and legumes, lean meats, fish and healthy fats. Previously, the diet has been linked to better heart and brain health.

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Haring and colleagues analyzed data from more than 90,000 U.S. participants in the Women’s Health Initiative study. The women entered the study between 1993 and 1998, at ages 50–79.

Participants described their diets in a survey at the start, and researchers compared their eating patterns to four healthy diets: a Mediterranean-style diet, the Healthy Eating Index 2010, the Alternative Health Eating Index 2010 and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH).

Over the next 16 years, participants suffered 28,718 fractures, including 2,121 hip fractures.

ad goes here:advert-3
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Women who adhered closest to a Mediterranean diet were 0.29% less likely than women who didn’t stick to the diet to break a hip, the authors reported in JAMA Internal Medicine on March 28.

Overall, 342 women would need to adhere to a Mediterranean diet to prevent one hip fracture, the authors say.

There was no link between a Mediterranean-style diet and a change in the risk of total fractures.

Likewise, there were no ties between any other diets and a change in the risks of hip or total fractures.

“The average woman should follow a healthy lifestyle which includes adopting a healthy dietary pattern … and being physically active,” Haring told Reuters Health in an email.

However, the study’s findings should be interpreted cautiously, writes Dr. Walter Willett in an accompanying editorial.

For example, women with higher diet quality also tended to be more active—and physical activity itself has also been linked to a reduced risk of hip fractures.

“Whether the findings for fracture risk represent causation or confounding, strong evidence based on many long-term cohort studies and controlled feeding studies of intermediate risk factors provides support for a Mediterranean-type diet in prevention of cardiovascular disease and other important outcomes, including obesity, diabetes mellitus, colorectal cancer, and dementia,” writes Willett, of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

Pages: 1 2 | Single Page

Filed Under: Conditions, Osteoarthritis Tagged With: Diet, eating, Fractures, hip, hip fracture, hip fracture risk, Mediterranean diet, Osteoporosis

You Might Also Like:
  • Healthy Diet Linked to Lower Hip Fracture Risk in U.S. Women
  • After Hip Fracture, Earlier Osteoporosis Drug Initiation Tied to Lower Subsequent Fracture Risk
  • Osteoporosis Drugs Tied to Lower Fracture Risk & Health Costs
  • Vitamin D, Calcium Supplements May Not Lower Fracture Risk

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

Meeting Abstracts

Browse and search abstracts from the ACR Convergence and ACR/ARP Annual Meetings going back to 2012.

Visit the Abstracts site »

ACR Convergence

Don’t miss rheumatology’s premier scientific meeting for anyone involved in research or the delivery of rheumatologic care or services.

Visit the ACR Convergence site »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use / Cookie Preferences

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2023 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)