There have recently been a few papers coming out over the last few years, suggesting that depression may be associated with bone loss, possibly leading to osteoporosis, although the mechanisms for this are not yet clear. As described in several papers which I was involved with at the Institute of Psychiatry, people with anorexia nervosa are also at increased risk for osteoporosis, probably because of both reduced calcium in their diets and because of reduced levels of oestrogen, due to amenorrhea. And today I came across a paper suggesting that the combination of AN plus depression might lead to even higher risk.
References:
Jerzy Konstantynowicz, Halina Kadziela-Olech, Maciej Kaczmarski, Roger M.D. Zebaze, Sandra Iuliano-Burns, Janina Piotrowska-Jastrzebska, and Ego Seeman. Depression in Anorexia Nervosa - A Risk Factor for Osteoporosis (2005) J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. published 7 June 2005
U Schweiger, M Deuschle, A Korner, CH Lammers, J Schmider, U Gotthardt, F Holsboer and I Heuser. Low lumbar bone mineral density in patients with major depression (1994) Am J Psychiatry 1994; 151:1691-1693
Treasure J, Serpell L. (2001) Psychiatr Clin North Am. Jun;24(2):359-70. Osteoporosis in young people. Research and treatment in eating disorders.
Treasure J, Serpell L. (1999) Hosp Med. Jul;60(7):477-80. Osteoporosis in anorexia nervosa.
Lucy Serpell, Janet Treasure. Invited Article: Osteoporosis - a serious health risk in chronic anorexia nervosa. European Eating Disorders Review, Volume 5, Issue 3 , Pages 149 - 157.
Leave a comment