The Connection Between Bones And Cardiovascular Disease

Bone mineral density correlates with cardiovascular disease in people of all ages. Taokinesis/Pexels 

Bone mineral density is influenced by age, sex, body mass index, smoking, race, glucocorticoids, hyperlipidemia and diabetes all which in turn influence the onset of cardiovascular disease.

By Patrick James Hibbert 

4 May 2020

The CDC states that Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is the most common type of heart disease. It affects the blood flow to the heart and if the blood flow decreases a heart attack can occur. Atherosclerosis is the cause of CAD and is a disease in which plaque builds up inside arteries. 

Studies have found that hypercholesterolemia and the resulting deposition and oxidation of lipids in tissues result in atherosclerosis and are related to osteoporotic bone loss. Along these lines, atherosclerosis is related not only to lipids but also to bone biosynthetic factors.

To investigate this further, researchers from a hospital and university in Taiwan researched the correlation between bone mineral density and cardiovascular disease. They found a relationship between them and published their work in Hindawi. 

This work follows previous research they have done on this relationship, work that suggests bone microarchitecture remodeling becomes more active when early coronary artery calcification occurs.

Scientists searched the medical records of 3,249 adults who underwent health examinations between June 2014 and February 2018 at a regional hospital in southern Taiwan. VJohns1580/Pexels 

There were significant differences between male and female subjects in smoking, exercise, diet habits, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, creatine, hemoglobin, triglycerides, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. They identified the associations between bone mineral density, lipid profile and calculated atherogenic indexes through simple and multiple linear regressions. 

Bone mineral density was assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in the lumbar spine, the bilateral femoral neck, and the hip regions. 26.9% of the patients had hypertension, 9.6% had diabetes, and 6.9% had hyperlipidemia. 5.2% were smokers, 42.8% had the habit of exercise, and 42.8% were vegetarians.

They found a significant positive correlation between bone mineral density at all the measured sites with atherogenic indexes. And the correlation remained after adjusting for age, sex, systolic blood pressure, glucose level, creatinine level, hemoglobin level, smoking, exercise, and vegetarian vs non-vegetarian diets. This showed that bone mineral density values could predict atherogenic indexes. 

Studies suggest that atherosclerosis and osteoporosis are linked by common risk factors and pathophysiological mechanisms. More evidence of this connection exists as exogenous lipids have been implicated in the regulation of osteoblastic differentiation, and the products of cholesterol biosynthetic pathways have been found to be important for the proper development of marrow stromal cells. To further support their position on this subject, they mention a study in Saudi Arabia that showed glucose and triglycerides being positively associated with bone mineral density.

In short, high cholesterol leads to lipids being deposited in bone tissue that cause atherosclerosis. The study notes a few ways to manage cholesterol levels, and they include lipid-lowering medications, specifically statins which are thought to have significant effects on both lipid profiles and bone mineral density. Physical exercise was mentioned and is known to improve lipid profiles and atherogenic indexes. And vegetarian diets were another proven way to lower cholesterol lipids.