Effects of Lifestyle Factors on Stiffness Index of Calcaneus Measured by Quantitative Ultrasound System among Japanese Women Aged 40 Years and Over: The Hizen-Oshima Study

Effects of Lifestyle Factors on Stiffness Index of Calcaneus
Measured by Quantitative Ultrasound System
among Japanese Women Aged 40 Years
and Over: The Hizen-Oshima Study

YONG ZHANG, KIYOSHI AOYAGI, SUMIHISA HONDA,¹ YUICHIRO YAHATA,² ITSURO YOSHIMI,³
YOSUKE KUSANO, NOBORU TAKAMURA, MINATSU KOBAYASHI,⁴
KAZUHIKO MOJI⁵ and TAI-ICHIRO TAKEMOTO⁶

Department of Public Health, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki 852-8523,
¹Department of Radiation Epidemiology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki 852-8523,
²Akita Prefectural Institute of Public Health, Akita 010-0874,
³Cancer Information and Epidemiology Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo 104-0045,
⁴Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute, East, Chiba 277-0882,
⁵Nagasaki University Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki 852-8523,
and ⁶Faculty of Health Management, Nagasaki International University, Nagasaki 859-3298

To explore how the stiffness index of the calcaneus is related to lifestyle factors, we examined the associations of lifestyle factors, age, and years since menopause, with stiffness index of the calcaneus among 573 community-dwelling Japanese women aged 40-89 years. Stiffness index of the calcaneus was obtained from quantitative ultrasound measurement. Body height and weight were measured, from which body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Physical activity index was calculated using a validated questionnaire. Dietary calcium intake and amount of ingested alcohol were estimated by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Current smoking status was obtained by questionnaire. In univariate analysis, stiffness index was positively related to physical activity index and BMI, and inversely to age and years since menopause, but not to dietary calcium intake. Stiffness index of drinkers and current smokers was not significantly different from that of non-drinkers and non-smokers, respectively. Among the natural menopausal women, multiple regression analysis showed that advancing age and years since menopause were associated with lower stiffness index, while higher physical activity index and greater BMI were associated with higher stiffness index. In conclusion, higher physical activity, in combination with adequate nutrition for weight maintenance, should be emphasized as a part of a healthy lifestyle in order to maintain bone health among middle-aged and elderly Japanese women.

keywords —— lifestyle factors; stiffness index; calcaneus; Japanese; women

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Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2003, 201, 97-107

Address for reprints: Kiyoshi Aoyagi, M.D., Department of Public Health, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, 1-12-4 Sakamoto, Nagasaki 852-8523, Japan.

e-mail: kiyoshi@net.nagasaki-u.ac.jp