"Until recently, it was a widely held scientific belief that any weight gain from the mother during pregnancy would have a beneficial effect on children's
bone mass. Our study results corroborate that there is no benefit in gaining weight above the recommendations for pregnancy weight gain for children's
bone mass, in both normal and overweight women prior to pregnancy," said lead author Dr.
Previous studies have shown significant associations between high levels of physical activity and higher values of
bone mass at early ages (6-9).
'Postmenopausal women, especially those with low
bone mass, should ask their doctor whether they might benefit from consuming this dietary pattern,' Silva added.
Low
bone mass results in bone loss of the skeleton and is regularly termed osteopenia or osteoporosis.
Bones, which are living tissue, build new material during weight-bearing or high-impact physical activities, resulting in increased
bone mass density.
"Women are more prone to developing osteoporosis after menopause because as oestrogen levels fall, new bone is not produced at the same rate and
bone mass is reduced.
"Compared with the women taking the placebo, those on the 1 mg dose experienced a
bone mass density increase of 1.4% at the neck of the femur," added Dr.
Increasing dietary magnesium intake or supplementing with magnesium may help women reach a higher peak
bone mass, potentially decreasing the risk of osteoporosis later in life.
It is also defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a bone mineral density of 2.5 standard deviations or more below the mean peak
bone mass (average of young, healthy adults) as measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry; the term "established osteoporosis" includes the presence of a fragility fracture.
* The postmenopausal patient is younger than age 65 but has a risk factor for low
bone mass, such as low body weight, a history of fracture, use of a high-risk medication, or a disease or condition associated with bone loss
Once peak
bone mass has been reached, further gains are minimal, so childhood through adolescence is the best time to pay attention to bone development.