Effects of Exercise and Nutritional Intervention to Improve Physical Factors Associated with Fracture Risk in Middle-aged and Older Women

Abstract

This 1-year intervention study was designed to examine the effects of exercise and nutritional intervention on the improvement of physical factors associated with fracture risk in middle-aged and older women. One hundred twenty-six women aged 55-75 years were divided into one of 3 groups: an exercise group, an exercise and nutrition group, and a control group. Nutritional intervention was designed to encourage women to obtain sufficient daily protein (65g or over) and calcium intake (600mg or over). The setting was center-based and home-based exercise. Measurements were bone stiffness, one-leg stance, whole body reaction time, grip strength, 10m obstacle walk and 30-second chair stand. Results show that exercise intervention can significantly improve physical ability in older women with regard to one-leg stance, whole body reaction time, 10m obstacle walk and 30-second chair stand, suggesting that older women are able to ameliorate fall risk factors by exercise intervention. The exercise and nutrition group had success in modifying bone loss when compared with the exercise group, suggesting that multimodal intervention that includes exercise and nutrition targeted at correcting bone loss should be recommended. The results suggest that exercise and nutritional intervention may be an effective approach to fracture prevention in middle-aged and older women.