Impact of exercise modalities on bone health: a meta-analysis of aerobic, resistance, and combined training on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials (assessed with Cochrane RoB 2)
PubMed 40715912 · doi:10.1007/s11657-025-01594-5
What was done
A systematic review and meta-analysis (PROSPERO CRD42024569040) evaluated the effects of aerobic, resistance, and combined training on bone mineral density (BMD) in postmenopausal women aged 50 to 60 years. Six databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar) were searched. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane RoB 2 tool, and a random-effects model was used to calculate mean differences (MDs) across 40 studies comprising 2,230 participants.
What was found
Exercise interventions led to statistically significant BMD improvements across all assessed anatomical sites: - Lumbar spine: MD = 0.02 g/cm² (p < 0.001) - Trochanter: MD = 0.02 g/cm² (p < 0.001) - Total hip: MD = 0.01 g/cm² (p < 0.001) - Femoral neck: MD = 0.01 g/cm² (p < 0.001) - Total body: MD = 0.00 g/cm² (p = 0.002)
Why it matters
This review synthesizes evidence showing that structured exercise regimens can reliably mitigate postmenopausal bone loss at critical fracture-prone sites like the spine and hip.
Limits
The reported absolute gains in BMD were very small (0.01 to 0.02 g/cm²), and 95% confidence intervals were omitted from the abstract. The abstract also omits head-to-head numerical comparisons between specific exercise modalities and does not report clinical fracture outcomes or adverse events.