Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

Beverage-specific alcohol intake and bone loss in older men and women: a longitudinal study

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 65, pages 526–532 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

There is inconsistent evidence regarding the association between moderate alcohol consumption and bone mineral density (BMD). The aim of this study was to describe the associations between total and beverage-specific alcohol intake and bone loss in older men and women.

Subject/Methods:

A total of 862 randomly selected subjects (mean age 63 years, range 51–81, 51% men) were studied at baseline and 2 years later. BMD was assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Beverage specific and total alcohol intake was assessed by food-frequency questionnaire. Falls risk was determined using the short form Physiological Profile Assessment. Incident fractures were ascertained by questionnaire.

Results:

Total alcohol intake in men positively predicted change in BMD at the lumbar spine and hip (β=0.008% and 0.006% per year per gram, P<0.05) after adjustment for confounders, but there was no significant association between alcohol intake and change in BMD in women. Lumbar spine BMD at baseline was negatively associated with frequency of spirits/liquor drinking in men (β=−0.01 g/cm2 per category, P=0.045) and was positively associated with frequency of beer drinking (low alcohol) in women (β=0.034 g/cm2 per category, P=0.002). Change in lumbar spine BMD was positively associated with the frequency of red wine drinking in men (β=0.08% per year per class, P=0.046). Neither beverage-specific nor total alcohol intake was associated with falls risk or fracture.

Conclusions:

Alcohol intake especially red wine might prevent bone loss in older men but not women, whereas low-alcohol beer may be protective in women and spirits/liquor may be deleterious in men.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Learn more

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  • Ambrosini GL, van Roosbroeck SA, Mackerras D, Fritschi L, de Klerk NH, Musk AW (2003). The reliability of ten-year dietary recall: implications for cancer research. J Nutr 133, 2663–2668.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Berg KM, Kunins HV, Jackson JL, Nahvi S, Chaudhry A, Harris Jr KA et al. (2008). Association between alcohol consumption and both osteoporotic fracture and bone density. Am J Med 121, 406–418.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Burger H, de Laet CE, van Daele PL, Weel AE, Witteman JC, Hofman A et al. (1998). Risk factors for increased bone loss in an elderly population: the Rotterdam Study. Am J Epidemiol 147, 871–879.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cawthon PM, Harrison SL, Barrett-Connor E, Fink HA, Cauley JA, Lewis CE et al. (2006). Alcohol intake and its relationship with bone mineral density, falls, and fracture risk in older men. J Am Geriatr Soc 54, 1649–1657.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • de Lorimier AA (2000). Alcohol, wine, and health. Am J Surg 180, 357–361.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dontas IA, Yiannakopoulos CK (2007). Risk factors and prevention of osteoporosis-related fractures. J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact 7, 268–272.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Felson DT, Zhang Y, Hannan MT, Kannel WB, Kiel DP (1995). Alcohol intake and bone mineral density in elderly men and women. The Framingham Study. Am JEpidemiol 142, 485–492.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Feskanich D, Korrick SA, Greenspan SL, Rosen HN, Colditz GA (1999). Moderate alcohol consumption and bone density among postmenopausal women. J Womens Health 8, 65–73.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Foley S, Quinn S, Jones G (2010). Pedometer determined ambulatory activity and bone mass: a population-based longitudinal study in older adults. Osteoporos Int 21, 1809–1816.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ganry O, Baudoin C, Fardellone P (2000). Effect of alcohol intake on bone mineral density in elderly women: The EPIDOS Study. Epidemiologie de l’Osteoporose. Am J Epidemiol 151, 773–780.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grønbæk M (2007). Confounders of the relation between type of alcohol and cardiovascular disease. Ann Epidemiol 17, S13–S15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hannan MT, Felson DT, Dawson-Hughes B, Tucker KL, Cupples LA, Wilson PW et al. (2000). Risk factors for longitudinal bone loss in elderly men and women: the Framingham Osteoporosis Study. J Bone Miner Res 15, 710–720.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hodge A, Giles GG, Patterson A, Brown W, Ireland P (2000). The Anti-Cancer Council of Victoria FFQ. Relative validity of nutrient intakes compared with diet diaries in young of middle-aged women in a study of iron supplementation. Aust N Z J Public Health 24, 576–583.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Høidrup S, Grønbaek M, Gottschau A, Lauritzen JB, Schroll M (1999). Alcohol intake, beverage preference, and risk of hip fracture in men and women. Copenhagen Centre for Prospective Population Studies. Am J Epidemiol 149, 993–1001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jones G, Nguyen T, Sambrook PN, Kelly PJ, Eisman JA (1995). A longitudinal study of the effect of spinal degenerative disease on bone density in the elderly. J Rheumatol 22, 921–925.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jugdaohsingh R, O’Connell MA, Sripanyakorn S, Powell JJ (2006). Moderate alcohol consumption and increased bone mineral density: potential ethanol and non-ethanol mechanisms. Proc Nutr Soc 65, 291–310.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kanis JA, Borgstrom F, De Laet C, Johansson H, Johnell O, Jonsson B et al. (2005). Assessment of fracture risk. Osteoporos Int 16, 581–589.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Knoke JD, Barrett-Connor E (2003). Weight loss: a determinant of hip bone loss in older men and women. The Rancho Bernardo Study. Am J Epidemiol 158, 1132–1138.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kool B, Ameratunga S, Robinson E, Crengle S, Jackson R (2008). The contribution of alcohol to falls at home among working-aged adults. Alcohol 42, 383–388.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lord SR, Menz HB, Tiedemann A (2003). A physiological profile approach to falls risk assessment and prevention. Phys Ther 83, 237–252.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mühlbauer RC, Lozano A, Reinli A, Wetli H (2003). Various selected vegetables, fruits, mushrooms and red wine residue inhibit bone resorption in rats. J Nutr 133, 3592–3597.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mukamal KJ, Robbins JA, Cauley JA, Kern LM, Siscovick DS (2007). Alcohol consumption, bone density, and hip fracture among older adults: the cardiovascular health study. Osteoporos Int 18, 593–602.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Papaioannou A, Kennedy CC, Cranney A, Hawker G, Brown JP, Kaiser SM et al. (2009). Risk factors for low BMD in healthy men age 50 years or older: a systematic review. Osteoporos Int 20, 507–518.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pedrera-Zamorano JD, Lavado-Garcia JM, Roncero-Martin R, Calderon-Garcia JF, Rodriguez-Dominguez T, Canal-Macias ML (2009). Effect of beer drinking on ultrasound bone mass in women. Nutrition 25, 1057–1063.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Piirtola M, Vahlberg T, Löppönen M, Räihä I, Isoaho R, Kivelä SL (2008). Fractures as predictors of excess mortality in the aged-a population-based study with a 12-year follow-up. Eur J Epidemiol 23, 747–755.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rapuri PB, Gallagher JC, Balhorn KE, Ryschon KL (2000). Alcohol intake and bone metabolism in elderly women. Am J clin nutr 72, 1206–1213.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sripanyakorn S, Jugdaohsingh R, Mander A, Davidson SL, Thompson RP, Powell JJ (2009). Moderate ingestion of alcohol is associated with acute ethanol-induced suppression of circulating CTX in a PTH-independent fashion. J Bone Miner Res 24, 1380–1388.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Tucker KL, Jugdaohsingh R, Powell JJ, Qiao N, Hannan MT, Sripanyakorn S et al. (2009). Effects of beer, wine, and liquor intakes on bone mineral density in older men and women. Am J Clin Nutr 89, 1188–1196.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Waugh EJ, Lam MA, Hawker GA, McGowan J, Papaioannou A, Cheung AM, Perimenopause BMD Guidelines Subcommittee of Osteoporosis Canada et al. (2009). Risk factors for low bone mass in healthy 40–60 year old women: a systematic review of the literature. Osteoporos Int 20, 1–21.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wosje KS, Kalkwarf HJ (2007). Bone density in relation to alcohol intake among men and women in the United States. Osteoporos Int 18, 391–400.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, Tasmanian Government and Royal Hobart Hospital Acute Care Program.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Menzies Research Institute, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia

    J Yin, T Winzenberg, S Quinn & G Jones

  2. Cancer Epidemiology Centre, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    G Giles

Authors
  1. J Yin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. T Winzenberg
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. S Quinn
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. G Giles
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. G Jones
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to J Yin.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Yin, J., Winzenberg, T., Quinn, S. et al. Beverage-specific alcohol intake and bone loss in older men and women: a longitudinal study. Eur J Clin Nutr 65, 526–532 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2011.9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2011.9

Keywords

  • bone mineral density
  • ethanol
  • alcoholic beverages
  • longitudinal studies

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links