Can vibration therapy help those living with osteoporosis?

There has been recent coverage in the press about vibration therapy and its benefits for people living with osteoporosis, so we thought it would be worthwhile sharing some introductory information about the technology.

What is vibration therapy?

Vibration therapy is when a mechanical vibration is delivered to the body whilst you are standing on an oscillating (vibrating) platform. As the machine vibrates, it transmits energy to your body, which causes your muscles to contract and relax dozens of times each second with the aim of increasing circulation, muscle strength and flexibility.

Recently there has been increasing amounts of research looking into the benefits of vibration therapy and it is becoming much more common in gyms, physiotherapy departments and even at home. This is different from vibration slimming machines.

Why was the technology developed?

Vibration therapy was initially developed by scientists involved in space travel. Studies revealed that astronauts who spent months in space stations lost 1 to 2% of bone each month. It found that they can regain such bone loss by standing on a lightly vibrating plate for 10 to 20 minutes each day.

This discovery has led others to wonder whether vibration therapy could help to prevent bone loss for those who have a diagnosis of osteoporosis or those who are unable to do physical exercise or other health reasons.