Association Between Dietary Cholesterol, Saturated Fat And Bone By Calcium Intake Levels.
Otto, Stephanie Marie Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: July 2020 - Volume 52 - Issue 7S - p 76
The role of diet in bone health has been widely researched. Numerous studies have concluded that dietary calcium is important for the development of healthy bone but the relationship between cholesterol and saturated fat, which may hint at the role of animal protein in bone health, has drawn less attention among researchers.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the association between dietary cholesterol and saturated fat intake, and bone mineral density (BMD) among women based on calcium intake levels.
METHODS: A total of 41 women (38.90 ± 7.92 years) were included in this study. Anthropometric data were collected and BMD (g/cm2) was measured at the hips, femoral, neck, and lumbar spine with a Hologic dual energy x-ray absorptiometry machine. Dietary intake was assessed using a 3-day food diary. Participants were divided into two calcium intake groups based on average daily calcium intake: a calcium sufficient group (calcium intake > 75% of the recommended intake) and a calcium deficient group (calcium intake < 75% of the recommended intake).
RESULTS: Among the calcium sufficient group, a significant positive correlation (p < .05) was found between lumbar spine BMD and dietary cholesterol intake (r = .41, p = .020) even after controlling for dietary protein intake (r = .41, p = .024). A significant positive correlation was found between femoral neck BMD and saturated fat intake (r = .37, p = .038) but this association disappeared after controlling for protein intake. No significant correlations were found among the calcium deficient group. Among the calcium sufficient group, regression analysis indicated that dietary cholesterol was a significant predictor of lumbar spine BMD only F(1,30) = 6.02, MSE = .03, p = .020, Adj. R2= .14.
CONCLUSIONS: Among a group of calcium deficient women, it appears that other nutrients are not associated with BMD. For women who are receiving an adequate amount of calcium, cholesterol and saturated fat intake are both associated with higher BMD. Of particular interest was the positive correlation between dietary cholesterol and lumbar spine BMD even after controlling for protein intake which might indicate the importance of animal sources of protein for bone health. Future research should examine the role of animal protein compared to non-animal protein on BMD.