Associations of fat mass and fat distribution with bone mineral density in pre- and postmenopausal Chinese women

Summary Fat mass (FM) is closely related to bone mineral density (BMD). However, the associations of FM and fat distribution with BMD in pre- and postmenopausal women are still poorly understood. The present study showed android fat mass accumulation after menopause had a negative association with BMD. Introduction FM is closely related to BMD. However, it is unknown whether FM and central fat distribution have different associations with BMD in pre- and postmenopausal women. The study aims to investigate the associations of FM and fat distribution with BMD in pre- and postmenopausal Chinese women. Methods Two hundred sixty premenopausal and 267 postmenopausal women aged 18 to 79 years were analyzed. Lean mass (LM), FM, percent body fat (%BF), android FM, gynoid FM, and total and regionalBMD weremeasured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Fat distribution was assessed by android to gynoid FM ratio (AOI). Multiple regression analysis was performed to examine the associations of BMD with FM, LM, and AOI. Results FM, %BF, android FM, and AOI were significantly higher, whereas total and regional BMD were significantly lower in postmenopausal women (all ً<0.01). In premenopausal women, FM was positively associated with total and regional BMD (all ً<0.05). AOI had no significant association with BMD. In postmenopausal women, FM was significantly associated with total and regional BMD even additionally adjusting for LM (all ً<0.01). AOI had significantly negative association with total, head, arm, and leg BMD (all ً<0.05). The results remained unchanged when replacing FM with %BF. Conclusions There were different associations of FM and fat distribution with BMD in pre- and postmenopausal Chinese women. Increased central body fat had a negative association with BMD. Our findings may have significant implications in the prevention of menopause-related osteoporosis through reducing centralized fat deposition.