The experience may be out of this world, but research shows that those who travel in outer space suffer from increased bone loss.
A study published Thursday by the University of Calgary School of Medicine followed 17 astronauts before and after their spaceflights.
The TBone study, conducted over seven years starting in 2015, found that prolonged weightlessness accelerated bone loss in astronauts.
“We found that the weight-bearing bones are only partially restored in most astronauts one year after spaceflight,” said Dr. Lee Gable, assistant professor in the department of kinesiology and lead author of the study.
“This suggests that the permanent bone loss due to spaceflight is about the same as the bone loss associated with the age of the Earth in one decade.”
Researchers traveled to the Johnson Space Center in Houston to scan the astronauts’ wrists and ankles before they left for space, upon their return to Earth, and then after six months and one 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 spaceflight, to others who cheerfully rode their bicycles to the Johnson Space Center campus to meet us for a study visit,” said d 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.”
The study found that some astronauts who flew shorter missions, under six months, regained lower body bone strength and density compared to those who flew longer.
The next study should focus on longer trips
As future space missions explore travel to more distant locations, the next iteration of the study plans to examine the effects of even longer journeys to support astronauts who may one day travel beyond the International Space Station.
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.
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