How do astronauts protect their bone health while in space

The research amassed new data on bone loss in astronauts caused by the microgravity conditions of space and the degree to which bone mineral density can be regained on Earth. It involved 14 male and three female astronauts with an average age of 47, whose missions ranged from four to seven months in space, with an average of about 5.5 months. A year after returning to Earth, the astronauts on average exhibited 2.1 per cent reduced bone mineral density at the tibia — one of the bones of the lower leg — and 1.3 per cent reduced bone strength. Nine did not recover bone mineral density after the space flight, experiencing permanent loss. Read more "We know that astronauts lose bone on long-duration spaceflight. What's novel about this study is that we followed astronauts for one year after their space travel to understand if and how bone recovers," said University of Calgary professor Leigh Gabel, an exercise scientist who was the lead author of the research published this week in the journal Scientific Reports. "Astronauts experienced significant bone loss during six-month spaceflights — loss that we would expect to see in older adults over two decades on Earth, and they only recovered about half of that loss after one year back on Earth." The bone loss occurs because bones that typically would be weight-bearing on Earth do not carry weight in space. Space agencies are going to need to improve countermeasures — exercise regimes and nutrition — to help prevent bone loss, Profe...

Credit: Virginia Commonwealth University New research by Henry J. Donahue, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering and School of Engineering Foundation Professor at the VCU School of Engineering, suggests that space radiation may cause astronauts in outer space to lose additional bone but not more muscle. The findings raise intriguing questions about the relationship between While in the reduced gravity of "Bone is a very dynamic tissue," said Donahue, who is principal investigator of a project funded by NASA and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute. "As more demands are put on it, it gets bigger to meet those demands." On the other hand, with fewer demands in As NASA prepares for deep space travel, astronauts will also face increased, prolonged exposure to In the first study of its kind, Donahue's team investigated the combined impact of space radiation and microgravity on bone and muscle, hypothesizing that radiation would exacerbate bone and muscle loss caused by microgravity. Researchers examined mice whose movements were restricted—an experience similar to microgravity—and those exposed to simulated space radiation. What they found was that while microgravity alone led to both bone and muscle loss, radiation alone did not. "Radiation plus microgravity amplifies the negative effect of microgravity on bone, but does not affect muscle loss," Donahue said. "It's as if exposure to radiation itself doesn't affect bone, but it makes it more sensi...

Like every other living creature we know of, humans evolved at the bottom of a gravity well. We take the Earth's tug for granted, and so do our bodies. So it's not surprising that our bodies behave oddly in orbit. What is surprising is that humans turn out to adapt remarkably well to zero-g (more precisely, microgravity). After all, back in 1961, Soviet scientists were genuinely worried that any prolonged period of weightless might even be fatal - which is why they limited Yuri Gagarin's first space flight to just 108 minutes and a single orbit. Since then, scientists around the world have had the benefit of years of data on the effects of long-term space living. (The record for a long-duration mission is still held by Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov, who completed a 438-day tour of duty aboard the Mir space station in 1995.) The crews of the ISS are already making full use of that experience, and will certainly add to it. Weightlessness itself is the most important and the most obvious influence on life in space. Most astronauts find their freedom from gravity exhilarating, especially as they adapt to their new environment. But weightlessness enormously complicates the business of daily life, from eating to sleeping. And space adaptation involves some very complex changes in the human body, both short-term and long-term. These changes can cause health problems both in space and on return to Earth. There are other factors, too. Outside the protective shield of the Earth'...

When NASA astronaut Scott Kelly leaves the earth for his International Space Station mission in 2015, he won’t walk the aisles of a grocery store for a year. To ensure he and other long-term astronauts stay healthy, NASA must make certain they have the proper food in tow. I caught up with NASA nutritionist Scott Smith to see what NASA scientists are doing to prepare for missions like Kelly’s (and along the way picked up an astronaut recipe to try at home). One essential nutrient NASA scientists have been studying in relation to long-term missions is iron. People often cite the health implications of low iron, such as the fatigue-marked condition of anemia, and herald the benefits of high-iron foods, such as beef or spinach. But a recent analysis of 23 astronauts’ blood and urine samples suggests the opposite issue may be the concern for extended spaceflight: not too little iron, but too much. “In flight, you end up with more iron than you need because your blood volume contracts,” said Smith, who was also the main author for the Instead of boosting health, the extra iron may actually be causing bone loss, according to the research, which was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in May. In other words, astronauts’ bone breaks down faster than new bone is made. The study showed that an increased storage of iron correlated with increased bone loss in astronauts on missions ranging from two to eight months. Bone loss is a major nutrition-related issue for as...

161 Shares Some serious health risks appear for astronauts living on a lunar base or going on deep space missions. Many threaten the astronauts’ lives, and at least one may jeopardize all deep space missions for the foreseeable future. 10Cardiac Problems A 2014 study on 12 astronauts found that the heart becomes 9.4 percent “The heart doesn’t work as hard in space, which can cause a loss of muscle mass,” said Dr. James Thomas of NASA. “That can have serious consequences after the return to Earth, so we’re looking into whether there are measures that can be taken to prevent or counteract that loss.” So far, the change in shape reverts after the astronauts come back to Earth. But no one knows what the long-term effects will be. Doctors already know that astronauts experience dizziness when they return to Earth. Sometimes, a sudden blood pressure drop will cause them to pass out when they stand up. Some astronauts also experience arrhythmia in space. The researchers need to devise exercise regimens to keep deep space astronauts safe from these effects. Certain people on Earth, such as those on bed rest or with heart failure, may also benefit from this kind of exercise. A new five-year study is also underway to determine if space may speed up the development of 9Drinking And Psych Problems Although NASA conducted an anonymous health care survey on its astronauts and ultimately At that time, NASA’s policy prohibited drinking for 12 hours before astronauts flew training jets. Th...

European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer and Nasa astronauts Tom Marshburn, Raja Chari and Kayla Barron pose during a fit check onboard the International Space Station's Harmony module. Photograph: Nasa/AP European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer and Nasa astronauts Tom Marshburn, Raja Chari and Kayla Barron pose during a fit check onboard the International Space Station's Harmony module. Photograph: Nasa/AP Astronauts lose decades’ worth of bone mass in space that many do not recover even after a year back on Earth, researchers have found, warning that it could be a “big concern” for Previous research has shown astronauts lose between 1% and 2% of bone density for every month spent in space, as the lack of gravity takes pressure off their legs when it comes to standing and walking. To find out how astronauts recover once their feet are back on the ground, a new study scanned the wrists and ankles of 17 astronauts before, during and after a stay on the The bone density lost by astronauts was equivalent to how much they would shed in several decades if they were back on Earth, said study co-author Dr Steven Boyd, of Canada’s University of Calgary and director of the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health. The researchers found that the shinbone density of nine of the astronauts had not fully recovered after a year on Earth – and they were still lacking about a decade’s worth of bone mass. The astronauts who went on the longest missions, which ranged from f...