This study was done to identify the effects of weight-bearing exercise(WBE) on bone metabolism.

WBE was performed for 12 weeks by healthy college women. Bone-related parameters were measured four times during this period by evaluating the immunoradiometric assay and enzyme immunoassay. Bone mineral densities(BMDs) were measured by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry before and after the WBE program. Data was analyzed using t-test, paired t-test, x²-test, and repeated measures ANOVA.

Osteocalcin, a bone formation marker, increased more in the experimental group than in the control group based on the interaction between time and group(F=3.29 p=.024). Little difference between the two groups was found for the other parameters: urinary deoxypyridinoline, insulin-like growth factorI, parathormone, serum calcium, and serum phosphorus without showing any time interaction between the groups. The femoral trochanter BMD rose in the experimental group while that of the control group fell, showing a significant difference for BMD(t=3.06 p=.005). However, there was no significant difference between the two groups for changes in BMD of the forearm, lumbar spine, femoral neck, and femoral ward's triangle.

These findings supported the WBE is beneficial for increasing bone formation in college women and long-term application is needed to substantiate the effects of WBE as a intervention in promotion of bone-health.

To investigate body compositons and bone mineral density(BMD) in college women and to find the relationship between them.

From January to March of 2001, BMD at four parts(forearm, lumbar, femur and whole body), body mass index(BMI), body fat mass(BFM), lean body mass(LBM) and body fat percentage(%Fat) were measured with the Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry. Other physical characteristics were measured with a scale, a height measurer, and questionnaires.

Grouping by the BMI, 43.2% showed low weight, and 5% over weight. When applying the percent Fat, 43.8 % was diagnosed as obesity group. The fact indicate that a majority of college women have unbalanced body composition with high percent Fat, compared to their body weight. Assessing the BMD with the WHO standards, 91.4~95.7% of the BMD of forearm and whole body was normal. But, 40.3% and 33.1~43.9% showed osteopenia at lumbar and femur, and 1.4 %, 0.7~7.2% showed osteoporosis. The BMD at all parts showed significant correlation each other(r=.29~.89, p=.001~.000). Body weight and BMI showed correlations to with BMDs at all parts of the body(r=.19~.46, p=.025~.000; r=.18~.45, p=.039~.000). But the percent Fat had a correlation with only femur neck BMD(r=.19, p=.024).

This study showed a majority of healthy college women were exposed to the risk for osteoporosis. Additional study is required to develop nursing interventions to remove the risk factors of osteoporosis. In particular, the acquisition of balanced body composition is necessary, increasing body weight and BMI through the increase of LBM, not through the quantitative increase of BFM.

This study was done to examine the threshold value of estimated height loss at which the risk of osteoporosis increases and to verify its discriminative ability in the detection of osteoporosis.

It was conducted based on epidemiological descriptive methods on 732 Korean women at a public healthcare center in Seoul between July and November 2010. ANOVA, Pearson correlation, logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve were used for data analysis.

There was an age-related correlation between bone mineral density (lumbar spine: F=37.88, p<.001; femur: F=54.27, p<.001) and estimated height loss (F=27.68, p<.001). Estimated height loss increased significantly with decreasing bone mineral density (lumbar spine: r=-.23, p<.001; femur: r=-.34, p<.001). The odds ratio for the point at which the estimated height loss affects the occurrence of osteoporosis was found to increase at a cut-off value of 2 cm and the area under ROC curve was .71 and .82 in lumbar spine and femur, respectively.

The optimal cut-off value of the estimated height loss for detection of osteoporosis was 2 cm. Height loss is therefore a useful indicator for the self-assessment and prognosis of osteoporosis.

The purpose of this study was to retrospectively describe the childhood sports activity level of Korean adult men and women and to determine whether a higher level of childhood sports activity was positively associated with adult bone mineral density.

A cross-sectional study of 100 Korean men (n=40) and women (n=60) was completed. Participants completed a detailed lifetime sports activity questionnaire and had their bone mineral density of the femur and lumbar spine measured using dual energy x-ray densitometry (DEXA). All sports activities were classified into four categories of peak strain score on the basis of ground reaction forces (GRF).

During the age of high school, women and men who participated in a high intensity sports activity demonstrated higher bone density in the femur site after adjustment for the effects of body weight, fat body mass, lean body mass, the level of calcium intake, and breast feeding period than those who did not participate in sports activity at all.

These results highlight the need to participate in high intensity sports activity during high school age as a means of increasing peak bone mass in the femur site.