Physical activity in women in menopause: a collaborative partnership for active lifestyles for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis / HAPPY BONES

The Happy Bones project’s aim is to develop and promote an exercise model that could help prevent osteoporosis in women between the ages of 50-65. Exercise and active lifestyle are important part of our lifestyle; but after menopause in women rate of osteoporosis and osteopenia tend to increase rapidly, causing health problems and decreasing quality of life.

Exercise is a like a magic pill for health promotion; it has numerous positive physiological and psychological effects for all human beings when done appropriately. Menopause is a naturel phase of the life in women causing physiological and mental changes; osteoporosis is being one of them decreasing the bone mineral density (BMD). According to estimates, 1 in 3 women over the ages of 50 experience fractures due to loss of bone mineral density. Subsequently causing hospitalization, requiring care, loss of income, reduced economic activity, decreasing quality of life, increasing the burden of national health system are impacted.

EU Physical Activity Guidelines puts forward the importance of physical activity (PA) in details for every age group and condition, stating health benefits, including “improved mineralization of bones in young ages, contributing to the prevention of osteoporosis and fractures in older ages”. If the menopause and decreased BMD is the reality in women’s life and PA has positive effects in prevention of BMD, development and application of tailored exercise and physical activity guides is the main objective of the project.

The project partners are Università degli Studi di Roma Foro Italico (Italy), Istituto Europeo per lo Sviluppo Socio Economico – ISES (Italy), Bulgarian Sports Development Association - BSDA (Bulgaria), Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi – UAIC (Romania), Fundació Salut i Envelliment UAB – FSIE (Spain) and Gazi University (Turkey).

Physical activity in women in menopause: a collaborative partnership for active lifestyles for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis / HAPPY BONES project is co-funded by Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.

To find about more about the project, please visit the project home page at https://www.happybones.eu