A husband hugged his wife so tightly that he broke five of her ribs. How could an ordinary embrace lead to such serious fractures?
One in Five Women Has This Disease, and Even a Light Blow Is Risky
Osteoporosis is the condition most often behind bones that break under even mild force.
According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's 2025 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 21.4% of women aged 50 and over had osteoporosis, or roughly one in five. Among men in the same age group, the rate was 3.6%.
Fractures caused by osteoporosis have also risen sharply. A joint study by the National Health Insurance Service and the Korean Society for Bone and Mineral Research found that the number of people aged 50 and over who suffered an osteoporotic fracture climbed about 4.5-fold, from 97,380 in 2002 to 434,470 in 2022.
Being underweight and consuming too little calcium stand out as risk factors for bone health. An agency analysis of 2024 survey data found that 5.6% of women with osteoporosis were underweight, compared with 1.7% of women without the disease.
Average daily calcium intake was also lower among people with osteoporosis, at 449.5 milligrams, than among those without it, at 487.2 milligrams.
Osteoporosis is a disease in which bone mass and strength decline, leaving bones prone to fracture under minor impact. It often produces no clear symptoms in its early stages, so it is sometimes detected only after a bone breaks.
'I Was Only Showing My Love': How a Wife's Five Ribs Broke
Chinese outlets including Xinmin Evening News reported that a man who runs a shop in Jiangsu province recently wrapped both arms around his 39-year-old wife and squeezed hard. She returned the embrace with her arms around his neck but soon felt severe chest pain and sank to the ground. The pain was so intense that she struggled to stand.
A computed tomography scan at a hospital found five fractures in total, including the fifth through eighth ribs on her left side and the fifth anterior rib on her right. A crack was also found in the second anterior rib on her left side.
Li Bing, deputy director of orthopedics at the Wuhouwen branch of the Sichuan Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital, said that if a fracture occurs under relatively weak force such as a hug, the bone itself may already be weakened.
Suddenly embracing and lifting someone can also concentrate pressure on the chest, the doctor said. The fifth through eighth ribs are especially curved, leaving them vulnerable to damage from external pressure.
The husband said he had hugged his wife as tightly as he could to show his love, adding that he never imagined a single embrace could break her ribs.
Details of the wife's daily habits also emerged. According to her husband, she weighed about 45 kilograms and was on the thin side, and she often skipped dinner to control her weight.
Running the shop with her husband left her little time outdoors, and she made a habit of avoiding the sun when she did go out. The husband said medical staff told him his wife had osteoporosis and that her weakened bones had contributed to the fractures.
'Fractures This Easily?' The Quiet Warnings Bones Send
Experts say attention should be paid to low-energy fractures, in which bones break under minor external force. They are common among older people and women who have gone through menopause, but this case shows that younger people also need to check their bone health.
Osteoporosis is called a silent disease because its early symptoms are not obvious. Some patients experience lower back and upper back pain, fatigue, loss of height and a stooped posture.
To prevent it, experts say, people should avoid extreme dieting and get enough calcium and vitamin D. Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium, so a deficiency can harm bone health.
Strength training and weight-bearing exercise suited to a person's own condition also help. Those already diagnosed with osteoporosis, however, should avoid sudden jumping or lifting heavy objects and should discuss their exercise routine with a doctor.