Bone Mineral Density in Navajo Men and Women and Comparison to Non-Hispanic Whites from NHANES (2005–2008)

Purpose. To describe bone mineral density (BMD) at the hip and spine and prevalence of low bone mass and osteoporosis in Navajo men and women across age, gender, and body mass index (BMI) compared with non-Hispanic (NH) Whites from NHANES (2005–2008). Methods. Cross-sectional dual energy x-ray absorptiometry measurements at the hip and spine in 1,097 participants from the Education and Research Towards Health study. Results. Bone mineral density was lower among younger Navajo than NH-Whites at lower BMI, and in overweight, younger men at lumbar spine and total hip. Spine BMD was lower in Navajo women, across BMI. Prevalence of low bone mass and osteoporosis in Navajo was higher than NH-Whites, particularly among women. Conclusions. Further research is needed to understand if lower BMD among younger Navajo signals a risk for future fracture, and fracture risk relative to BMD, given the challenges in health care access and fracture morbidity among minorities.