Bone mineral content and density in overweight and control adolescent boys

The aim of this study was to compare bone mineral content (BMC) and areal bone mineral density (aBMD) in overweight and control adolescent boys. This study included 27 overweight (body mass index [BMI] > 25 kg/m²) adolescent (17.1 ± 2.1 yr old) boys and 29 maturation-matched (16.7 ± 2.0 yr old) controls (BMI< 25 kg/m²). Bone mineral area (BMA), BMC, and aBMD were assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) at the whole body (WB), lumbar spine (L2-L4), total hip (TH), femoral neck (FN), and left forearm (ultra distal [UD], mid Radius, 1/3 Radius, and total Radius). Body composition (lean mass, fat mass, and fat mass percentage) was assessed also by DXA. The expressions WB BMC/height, WB aBMD/height, and WB BMAD were used to adjust for WB bone size. WB BMC, WB BMC/height, WB BMA, L2-L4 aBMD, TH aBMD, FN aBMD, and UD aBMD were higher in overweight boys compared with controls (p < 0.05). However, WB BMAD was lower in overweight boys compared with controls (p < 0.05). After adjustment for weight, lean mass, or BMI, using a one-way analysis of covariance, there were no differences between the 2 groups (overweight and controls) regarding bone characteristics (BMC, BMA, aBMD, BMC/height, aBMD/height, and BMAD of the WB and aBMD of the lumbar spine; the TH; the FN; and the forearm). In conclusion, this study shows that after adjusting for weight, lean mass, or BMI, there are no differences between overweight and control adolescent boys regarding aBMD values.