The experience may be out of this world, but research shows that those who travel in outer space suffer from increased bone loss.
CALGARY – The experience may be alien, but research shows that those who travel in outer space suffer from increased bone loss.
A study published Thursday by the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine followed 17 astronauts before and after their space flights.
The TBone study, conducted over seven years starting in 2015, found that prolonged weightlessness accelerated bone loss in astronauts.
“You see, on average, they lose about two decades of bone. “We found that the weight-bearing bones are only partially restored in most astronauts one year after spaceflight,” said Dr. Lee Gabel, assistant professor of kinesiology and lead author of the study.
“After a year of recovery, they tend to regain about half of that. This suggests that permanent bone loss due to spaceflight is roughly the same as age-related bone loss over a decade on Earth.”
The researchers traveled to the Johnson Space Center in Houston to scan the astronauts’ wrists and ankles before they left for space, when they returned to Earth, after six months and then after a year.
The findings, published in Scientific Reports, say the loss occurs because bones that would normally bear weight on Earth, such as the legs, don’t have to bear weight in a zero-gravity setting.
“We saw astronauts who had trouble walking due to weakness and lack of balance after returning from space flight, to others who cheerfully rode their bicycles to the Johnson Space Center campus to meet us for a study visit,” said Dr. Dr. Stephen Boyd, director of the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health and professor at the Cummings School of Medicine.
“There are quite different reactions among the astronauts when they come back to Earth.”
Boyd said the new scanning technology has changed the world.
“We are using a new technology that can measure the fine details of bone that are even finer than a human hair in terms of resolution. We can see details there that weren’t possible to see before with these astronauts.”
The study found that some astronauts who flew shorter missions — under six months — regained more strength and bone density in the lower body than those who flew longer.
The next iteration of the study plans to look at the effects of even longer trips to support astronauts who may one day travel beyond the International Space Station.
“NASA is really interested in finding out if longer-duration spaceflight could lead to even more bone loss, which wouldn’t be very good for the astronaut,” Boyd said.
“The next phase is to do a study that will involve crew members who spend a year on the International Space Station, which will give us more insight into whether you’re losing even more bone after that one-year period.”
Former University of Calgary chancellor and astronaut Robert Thirsk said he knows how difficult it can be to return to solid ground.
“Just as the body must adapt to spaceflight at the beginning of the mission, it must also adapt back to Earth’s gravitational field at the end,” he said.
“Fatigue, dizziness and imbalance were immediate challenges for me upon my return. Bones and muscles take the longest to recover from spaceflight. But within a day of landing, I felt comfortable as an earthling again.”
The study was funded by the Canadian Space Agency in partnership with the European Space Agency, NASA and astronauts from North America, Europe and Asia.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on June 30, 2022.
Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
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