Male smokers are at increased risk of bone fractures, early death

London, Jun 9 (Prensa Latina) A new study from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) has revealed that male smokers –who, demographically, are more likely than women to light up- are also placing themselves at a significantly increased risk exposed to a higher risk of osteoporosis, bone fractures, and early death.

June 9, 2022
17:42

UNLV’s study bolsters data from previous studies, which found that smoking increases the chance of spine and hip fractures in men to 32% and 40%, respectively. And, the older studies found, between 21% and 37% of those injured male smokers die within a year of their bone breaks. Smoking is thought to increase the risk of skeletal fractures because the chemicals in cigarettes negatively impact bone cells and reduce the body’s ability to absorb Vitamin D and calcium -; critical nutrients for strong bone mineral density, according to researchers.

Tobacco becomes a cause of injuries in general because there is evidence nicotine interferes with the tissue repair process, making the human body more susceptible to injuries and inhibits the healing of fractures.

A UNLV research team analyzed nearly 30,000 broken bone cases reported over the past three decades in 27 research publications and found that smoking increases the risk of breaking a bone by as much as 37%.

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