Exercise may slow osteoporosis

AUGUSTA, Ga., April 29 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say exercise helps to forestall osteoporosis in women.

Researchers at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta found study participants who exercised more than 180 minutes a week retained greater bone density.

"Our work provides more evidence that physical activity is important for maintaining bone density. It's a case of 'use it or lose it,'" principal investigator Dr. Joseph Cannon says in a statement.

Cannon and colleagues measured 36 women between the ages of 20 and 50 for bone mineral density and levels of follicle-stimulating hormone -- an ovary regulator released by the pituitary gland.

They correlated higher levels of the hormone with lower bone mineral density and found the hormone combined with white blood cells stimulated production of interleukin-1, which also correlated with lower bone mineral density.

Exercise, the researchers suggest, may help keep bone breakdown under control by inhibiting factors promoting interleukin-1.

The findings were presented at the Experimental Biology conference in Anaheim, Calif.