Relationship between physical activity, lean body mass, and bone mass in the Mexican adult population

We evaluated the association between leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), bone mineral content (BMC), and lean mass (LM) in whole body (wb) and limbs of the Mexican adult population. Our results demonstrate that some types of LTPA with relatively high/medium impact on bones such as football, basketball, tennis, and weightlifting improve BMC and LM.

To evaluate the effect of different kinds of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) on bone mass values and its association with lean mass (LM) in the whole body (wb) and limbs of a large sample of Mexican men and premenopausal (pre-MP) women.

We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of data from the Health Workers Cohort Study. Bone mineral content (BMC, kg), bone area (cm²), and LM (kg) were measured with DXA. The LTPA level and the "sedentary" condition were determined using a validated questionnaire adapted for the Mexican population. One-way ANOVA tests evaluated the differences in weight, height, body mass index, and wb, lower limb (ll) and upper limb (ul) BMC and LM between the active (those who engaged in LTPA) and sedentary group. Relationships between BMC and LM values were analyzed. Slopes of the curves and Z scores of LTPA groups with respect to the sedentary group were compared.

In men, both wb-BMC and ll-BMC were significantly higher in the groups performing basketball, football, tennis, weightlifting, and running, and all wb-LM, ll-LM, and ul-LM were higher in running, weightlifting, football, and basketball groups with respect to the sedentary group. Both the Z scores and the slopes of BMC-vs-LM relationships were higher than the controls, but only in the ll of male basketball and football players.

Our findings demonstrate that some types of LTPA with relatively high/medium impact on bones, such as football, basketball, tennis, and weightlifting, improve both BMC and LM compared to sedentary individuals. Finally, this relationship is stronger for the bones found in the legs and it seems that women are less sensitive to this effect, possibly due to hormonal, dietary, and pharmacological reasons.