People with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at increased risk for fractures, especially among the elderly people who face age-related bone-thinning disease.
Type 2 diabetes is a global health issue which occurs with the aging of the population and more so among the diabetics, said researchers. Diabetes is a chronic medical condition in which sugar increases in the bloodstream. This condition is corrected by the hormone, insulin, which helps to move sugar from the blood to cells where it is used as energy.
"Our findings identify skeletal deficits that may contribute to excess fracture risk in older adults with diabetes ultimately lead to new approaches to improve prevention and treatment," said Elizabeth Samelson, the Hebrew Senior Life's institute for Aging Research in Boston.
Samelson and her team examined more than 1,000 people using a special medical scan for over a period of three years. The researchers concluded that older people with type 2 diabetes had osteoporosis which cannot be measured by standard bone density testing.
"Fracture in older adults with diabetes is a highly important public health problem and will increase with the aging of the population and growing epidemic of diabetes," she said. .
The older people with osteoporosis, the age- related bone-thinning disease, are prone to fractures and face poor quality of life, disability and even death. Besides the elderly, even normal or higher bone density individuals with diabetes face similar risk of fractures, said researchers.
Among those who had undergone the special medical scan had almost 40% to 50% chance of gettting hip fracture, which is considered one of the serious types of osteoporosis-related fractures, explained researchers.
Doctors usually advise the diabetics to control sugar levels by regular exercise and intake of vegetables and vitamin-rich food. To avoid diabetes, the World Health Organization recommends avoidance of smoking, inculcation of healthy habits and regular exercise.
