Bone health and HIV disease

February 2008     View PDF     En español

Who is at risk for bone loss?

Simply put, everyone. Although bone loss occurs naturally as people age, other factors can contribute to it. In general, the following factors make it more likely that you’ll face bone loss.

• Age—the older you are, the higher the risk.
• Sex—women face bone loss more often than men, though older men have increased risk.
• Race—all races are at risk, but Caucasians and Asians are more likely to face bone loss.
• Lifestyle—several things contribute to bone loss: smoking, drinking alcohol, excess caffeine, and not staying active.
• Diet—not eating the right type or amount of foods that have calcium or vitamin D in them raises your risk.
• Body size—in general, the smaller your bones and the thinner you are, the more at risk you are.
• Menopause—this is a risk factor for all women, including those whose periods stop before menopause.
• Hormone levels—increased bone loss can be due to low levels of testosterone, common in men with HIV.
• Medicines—certain drugs have been shown to increase bone loss, especially some that treat chronic health conditions. However, HIV drugs may or may not contribute to bone loss.
• HIV—HIV’s activity in the body appears to increase bone loss to some degree. Some study results point to this, though it’s not confirmed. For more information see the section, Research on bone loss.