Myth Buster: Ethnicity & Osteoporosis

Myth: Only Caucasian women get osteoporosis.

Facts: Asian women get osteoporosis at the same rate as Caucasians. Hispanics and African Americans get the disease, too, although at lower rates. Estimates show that 20 percent of Caucasian and Asian women age 50-plus have osteoporosis, characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone tissue. Another 52 percent have low bone mass, placing them at risk for osteoporosis.

The rates for Hispanics drop to 10 percent for osteoporosis and 49 percent for low bone mass, and for African Americans, 5 percent and 35 percent. Why the differences? Research about Hispanics isn’t complete, but for African Americans, “it’s a genetic trait, that’s all,” says Robert Recker, M.D., vice president of the National Osteoporosis Foundation. “African Americans as an ethnic group simply enjoy the evolutionary advantage of larger bones that are more resistant to fracture.”