Anorexia nervosa is considered as a risk factor to cause osteoporosis, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases reports, affirming mental health studies conducted beforehand. This ailment usually ends up in a surgical procedure such as hip replacement, against which persistent reports claimed that failed metal on metal hip replacement might cause health problems after revision.

Osteoporosis is a disorder affecting the bones of the body. When a person is stricken with the ailment, his bones become brittle because of the loss in bone density and are easier to break. This type of condition happens among ageing women and those who are diagnosed with eating disorder known asanorexia. People affected with anorexia looks for ways to treat such eating disorder. However, the insufficiency of calcium in the body is usually the main reason for the primary development of osteoporosis.

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder common in people who fear gaining weight. They are paranoid of being overweight when, in fact, they are awfully thin. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, an estimated 0.5 to 3.7 percent of females have it. While the majority of people with anorexia are female, an estimated five to 15 percent of them are male, the WebMD says.

Those stricken with anorexia sternly restrict their dietary consumption. The illness is being linked to several health issues which in certain instances may lead to death. Anorexia nervosa holds a major physical magnitude which has affected individuals experiencing nutritional and hormonal problems that has negative impact on bone density. For example, when a woman possesses truncated body weight, her body will stop producing estrogen, thereby causing amenorrhea or absent menstrual periods.  The low estrogen levels subsidize to the important losses in bone density.

Furthermore, individuals with anorexia often yield disproportionate amounts of the adrenal hormone cortisol, which is known to trigger bone loss. Other problems – such as a decrease in the production of growth hormone and other growth factors, low body weight (apart from the estrogen loss it causes), calcium deficiency, and malnutrition – contribute to bone loss in girls and women with anorexia. Weight loss, restricted dietary intake, and testosterone deficiency may be responsible for the low bone density found in males who have had the disorder.

Studies suggest that low bone mass (osteopenia) is common in people with anorexia and that it occurs early in the course of the disease. Girls with anorexia are less likely to reach their peak bone density and therefore may be at increased risk for osteoporosis and fracture throughout life which causes excruciating pain leading to a surgical procedure such as DePuy Pinnacle.