Shrinkage of the human skeleton

[beegeebee]

Is there a ratio for the shrinkage in height of the human skelton from the age of 20 to say 60?

[helsbels666]

i haven't come across a formula as such. The skeleton shrinks a result of osteoporosis which is a loss in bone mass. Bone mass rises rapidly in youth and peaks in our 30s and starts to fall there after. It is very variable to individual though and is speeded up by things like, being a woman and having little oestrogen (eg menopause time), smoking, alcohol, a sedentary lifestlye, rheumatoid arthritis, a family history of it, taking certain drugs such as steroids for a long period (over 3 months). This loss in bone density causes small crush fractures in the spine and a decrease in height. This can be gradual and asymptomatic. It may lead to a dougers hump and creases on the abdomen as a result of the new posture/hreight.

[beegeebee]

helsbels666. Many thanks, the reason for the question was: I was 6'11/2" in my twenties and am now 5' !0" which is rather a lot of shrinkage!