6 months of space flight causes osteoporosis equal to 20 years on Earth

A new study on osteoporosis in astronauts shows that astronauts who fly into space for about 6 months have the same level of osteoporosis as an elderly person with the disease in 20 years.

According to Reuters news agency, the study was carried out with 17 astronauts who have worked on the International Space Station (ISS), including 14 men and 3 women. The astronauts have an average age of 47 and have been on missions lasting from 4 to 7 months.

Space travel poses various challenges to the human body

The study gathered data on the osteoporosis in these astronauts caused by the zero gravity conditions in space, as well as their ability to regain bone mineral density after they returned to Earth.

The study found that, one year after returning to Earth, astronauts experienced an average 2.1% decrease in mineral density in the tibia (a bone in the lower leg) and a 1.3% decrease in strength. skeletal.

Nine of them were unable to recover bone mineral density after the spaceflight, suffering from permanent osteoporosis.

"We know that astronauts develop osteoporosis during long-term travel. What's new with this study is that we followed astronauts for a year after their spaceflight to understand whether bones recover or not," said Professor Leigh Gabel of the University of Calgary (Canada). Mr. Gabel is the lead author of the study published in the journal Scientific Reports.

The expert said the astronauts suffered significant osteoporosis during about 6 months of space flight. This degree of osteoporosis is equivalent to an elderly person on Earth who has had osteoporosis for 20 years. "They only recovered about half of their bone density after a year back on Earth," Gabel said.

Osteoporosis in space occurs due to the loss of gravity, the bones are not "trained" to support the body like when on Earth.

This study shows that space agencies need to improve their countermeasures to this problem, such as exercise and nutrition for astronauts.

The team did not disclose the nationalities of the participating astronauts, but said they were from the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Canadian Space Agency, the European Space Agency and the Exploration Agency. Japanese aerospace.