Can a vibrating belt fend off bone density loss?

An low-intensity vibrating belt approved by the Food and Drug Administration mimics some effects of exercise to help maintain bone density. Maria Fabrizio for NPR hide caption

Andrea Bloom, 59, of Pleasanton, Calif., learned she had osteopenia, or low bone density, after a bone density scan. "When I saw my results, it was pretty shocking because I was one-tenth of a point away from an osteoporosis diagnosis," she says.

More than 40 million adults in the United States aged 50 and older have osteopenia, which can progress to osteoporosis, leaving bones brittle and weak.

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Bloom's doctor prescribed the Food and Drug Administration approved Osteoboost belt, a wearable device that delivers targeted vibrations to the spine and hips, approved for post-menopausal women with osteopenia. Now, every morning when she walks her dog, she straps it on. "It's a black belt that you wear around your hip area. And it's a very, very light vibration," says Bloom, who wears it about 30 minutes a day.

How it works

The device works by mimicking some effects of exercise. The low-magnitude vibrations produce mechanical signals similar to those generated when muscles contract, stimulating bone-building cells called osteoblasts.

"So for 30 minutes a day, when you wear the belt, you're stimulating those bone-building cells," says Dr. Pamela Peeke , chief medical officer for Osteoboost, who says she uses the device while she's on her elliptical, which she says gives her another "layer of stimulation."

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The science behind vibration therapy traces back to NASA-funded research. "The original vibration plate was developed through funding from NASA to come up with a therapy that astronauts could use in space to fend off the effects of zero gravity on bone loss," says Mike Jaasma, one of the Osteoboost's founders. "That sparked some of the early research into the effects of vibration."

In zero gravity, bones deteriorate because they need mechanical stress to maintain themselves. On Earth, walking and carrying your own weight, as well as doing weight-bearing and resistance exercises (such as squats, lifting weights, walking, running) put stress on bones to promote bone-building. That stimulus disappears in space, and bone loss accelerates.

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What the research shows

The FDA approved the Osteoboost device in 2024. In a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial of 126 women in their 50s and older, those who used the device regularly showed significantly less bone strength loss in the spine over 12 months.

"The placebo group lost 2.84% of their bone strength over the course of the year. Those who received the vibration therapy lost only 0.5%," Jaasma says. "What we saw at the end of 12 months was an 83% reduction in the loss of bone strength in the spine," he says.

The clinical trial did not test whether users have a lower fracture risk (which would have taken longer to determine), and a group of bone health and aging scientists says there are shortcomings to the clinical findings and they are critical of the way the Osteoboost researchers described their findings. "While we recognize there could be potential benefits to slowing bone loss at a singular site directly beneath a wearable device," the scientists wrote in a letter (to the journal that published the study, Journal of Bone and Mineral Research ), "the investigators' conclusion that such a focal treatment could be prescribed as a treatment strategy for osteopenia, a systemic - not a local - disease, is not supported by the study results."

Osteoboost researchers responded that the device was designed to target the lumbar spine and hips, the sites where fractures carry the most serious consequences.

Bones and muscles work together

Researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center are studying vibration plate technology in animal models, with the goal of protecting bone health in cancer patients . Biomedical engineer Gabriel Pagnotti says the benefits may extend to muscle as well.

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"The vibration plates can reproduce some of the dynamics of exercise on the muscle," he says. "What we're doing is stimulating the bone cells that form new bone or mineralize the pre-existing bone," which may improve bone health.

"Bone and muscle are being maintained in a crosstalk fashion," he adds. "A lot of forces from one are transmitted into the other. And the health of the bone can dictate the health of the muscle," he says.

A tool that works in combination

Osteoboost is the only FDA-approved vibration device specifically authorized to treat osteopenia and is available by prescription only. It costs about $1,000 out of pocket, as insurance does not cover the device. Many over-the-counter vibration plates are widely available, but evidence supporting their benefits is limited.

Dr. Eric Ascher, a primary care physician at Northwell Health in New York, says vibration devices should be considered an add-on, not a replacement, for bone-health habits: weight-bearing exercise, adequate calcium and vitamin D, good sleep, and good nutrition. He says that while the devices are generally safe, on their own they're unlikely to be a panacea. "It might help, it can't hurt," he says.

Ascher says people should consult their healthcare provider if they want to use an over-the-counter vibration plate. He says people with certain conditions may want to avoid using them , including people who have a blood clot, a recent concussion, or those with a pacemaker. Ascher says be cautious with social media claims, as the hype can get ahead of the science.

Bloom's most recent bone density scan showed significant improvements, and she says, for her, the belt is worth it. It could be that a combination of the belt, diet changes – including adding dried plums , which have been shown to support bone health – and adding in more exercise is all helping.

"I'm trying to add more jump roping in because they say things like that are really good," she says. "And I do cardio three times a week."