Current bone mass and body weight changes in alcoholic males.

The relationships between current bone mass and changes in body weight were studied in 45 male veterans whose weights and heights at the time of enlistment into the Armed Forces over 40 years ago were obtained, and who were, or had been, chronic alcohol abusers. Those who lost and those who gained weight did not appear to differ in severity of alcoholism but differed in femoral neck cortical thickness, iliac crest trabecular bone volume, and lumbar bone mineral density, the former being significantly lower. Subjects with a hip fracture and those with spinal fractures are significantly lighter now, but were initially of similar weight to those without fractures. We conclude that maintenance of body weight protects against bone loss and fracture even in the presence of chronic alcoholism.