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Results
of a new study appearing in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
suggest that exercise could help women with rheumatoid arthritis
avoid osteoporosis.
The study
included 67 women who had suffered from the disease for an
average of 15 years. Most had been treated with glucocorticoids
-- a steroid that increases the risk of osteoporosis.
Danish
researchers compared the strength of the women's thigh muscles
to various measures of bone strength, and found that women
who had below-normal thigh bone density also had 20 percent
less strength in thigh muscles than women whose thigh bones
were of normal density.
In contrast,
women with the strongest thigh muscles also had the most dense
bone mass.
"This
finding indicates that physical activity including muscle
strengthening exercises may play a part in the prevention
of bone loss in these patients," the researchers concluded.
Source:
Arthritis Week
of April 7, 2002
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