Superhero Suit can Help Offset Bone Loss in Astronauts

A new superhero suit may be effective in protecting against bone loss in astronauts.

Even with regular exercise, an astronaut can lose 1.5 per cent of bone mass in just a month - similar to the bone loss experienced by a post-menopausal woman in a year.

Study Sheds Light on Mystery of Bone Loss from Drug for Epilepsy and Bipolar Disorder
A possible explanation for the bone loss that may occur following long-term use of a medicine widely used to treat epilepsy, bipolar disorder, and other conditions is being reported

Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientists have designed a suit made of elastic material deliberately cut too short for the wearer, and has stirrups that wrap around the feet so that it stretches when the wearer puts it on.

The elasticity of the stretched material then pulls the wearer's shoulders towards their feet just as gravity would, reports New Scientist.

In normal gravity a person's legs bear more weight than the torso. The suit mimics this using vertical ribbons of inelastic material, each stitched into the suit in a series of caterpillar-like loops. The size of the loops limits how far the suit's elastic material can stretch. The more it stretches, the greater the force it exerts, so by allowing the suit's legs to stretch more than its torso the wearer's legs are subjected to the strongest force.

Bone Loss In Postmeopausal Women Not Helped By Soy Isoflavone Tablets
Soy isoflavone tablets have been found ineffective in reducing bone loss in postmenopausal women, according to researchers.

Members of the design team are now planning to see what happens when they wear the suits overnight. The spine elongates when it is not compressed - both when people are lying down and when they are in microgravity.

The team reasons that if the compressive force of the stretchy suit prevents sleepers' spines from elongating while they are lying flat, it should also help astronauts in space.

Study Sheds Light on Immune System's Role in Bone Loss
Researchers at the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) have shed light on the role that the body's immune system plays in bone loss.

However, Jean Sibonga, a bone specialist at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, doesn't think it will stop bone loss entirely.

While the body's weight does play a part in maintaining bone density, she said that impacts and muscle activity play a bigger role in bone health.

'Sprouty' Protein Could Help Ward Off Obesity, Osteoporosis
A newly discovered protein termed as 'sprouty' protein could be the answer to obesity and/or osteoporosis, as well as diabetes, osteoarthritis and heart disease.

The study is published in Acta Astronautica.

Source-ANI