Spinal Bone Mineral Density in Premenopausal Vegetarian and Nonvegetarian Women: Cross-sectional and Prospective Comparisons

Objective To compare spinal bone mineral density (BMD) and 1-year BMD change between premenopausal vegetarian and nonvegetarian women. Design Cross-sectional comparison of spinal BMD at baseline and prospective comparison of a subsample. Setting A western Canadian metropolitan area. Subjects/samples Healthy vegetarian (n=15 lacto-ovo-vegetarian, n=8 vegan) and nonvegetarian (n=22) women aged 20 to 40 years, with regular menstrual cycles and stable body weight completed baseline measurements. Twenty of these women (6 lacto-ovo-vegetarian, 5 vegan, 9 non-vegetarian) participated in repeat measurements at approximately 13 months. Statistical analyses performed Descriptive statistics, independent sample and paired t tests, 1-way analysis of variance, correlation analysis, and stepwise multiple regression were used to compare groups and to assess associations with BMD. Results At baseline, subjects were 27.2±5.1 years old. Vegetarians had lower body mass index (21.1±2.3 vs 22.7±1.9, P