What is Sarcopenia?   And how is it affecting my health?

Welcome back to another great addition to our Health Blog. This month we wish to discuss the increasing concern of a health condition called Sarcopenia. Today we dive into the terminology, the very confronting research and what we can do about it. We look at how to prevent sarcopenia and highlight the continual need as a human to make healthy choices in an age which requires more and more self-discipline. We hope you guys enjoy this episode as much as we enjoyed putting it together. So, lets jump right in. 

What is Sarcopenia?

“Sarco” referring to muscle and “penia” from the Greek root word meaning decrease or deficiency. Sarcopenia was once gracefully considered as our bodies natural muscle and strength loss due to aging. Sarcopenia, however, is now officially considered an independent clinical condition and a significant worldwide health problem. Due to the alarmingly rapid increase in population suffering from sarcopenia and the high-risk of mortality for sufferers of the condition, it has recently been added to the International Classification of Diseases by the World Health Organisation. Sarcopenia / low skeletal muscle mass is now widely considered to be one of the biggest risk factors for all-cause mortality, meaning that if you have low levels of muscle mass then you are at significant risk of early death compared to individuals your same age and gender.

Some Alarming Research

“People with sarcopenia are around twice as likely to be hospitalised as those without the condition”

“On average, individuals with sarcopenia have a 58 percent higher risk of fracture than people without the condition”

A 2021 study published in the Journal of Osteoporosis and Sarcopenia assessed the relationship between sarcopenia and risk of mortality. It was found that if you have sarcopenia along with a chronic health condition (any) that you have a 37% increased risk of mortality than if you had the same condition without sarcopenia. This is a scary statistic when we consider that approx. 50% of all Australian Adults have 1 or more chronic health conditions and that 74% of all deaths worldwide in 2019 were attributed to a chronic health condition.

A 2023 Meta analysis published in the Public Library Of Science Journal found that for all populations from 18-65+ years there is a 57% increased risk of mortality for sarcopenia suffers. This paper also found that for people with sarcopenia that Body Mass Index (BMI) (commonly used to assess healthy weight range relative to your height) significantly alters your risk of mortality. For individuals with sarcopenia, having a BMI between 18-25 increases your relative risk of mortality to 34% compared non sarcopenic individuals. For individuals with BMI’s between 25-30 BMI you have a 91% relative risk and for people with BMI’s of 30+ it equates to a 158% increase risk of mortality. That means you are more than 2.5X at risk of early mortality if you have low muscle mass and are overweight. This paper highlights that being overweight with low muscle mass is a very significant health concern.

So what is our Solution?

Prevention is the cure. Research shows that 74% of all chronic health conditions can be prevented and fortunately sarcopenia is no different. We can prevent it from occurring in the first place and minimise our risk of early mortality. In the case of sarcopenia, there are no current pharmaceuticals on the market that can prevent, reduce, or reverse sarcopenia. So how can we stop sarcopenia happening and all the nasty associated risks that it poses to our health?

Let's break it Down. Research is clear that sarcopenia can only be combated by good lifestyle choices. Here is what the evidence says:

A) Develop and increase muscle mass in our early years

This means putting on muscle through strengthening and resistance exercise. Remember that before the age of 30 our bodies have a greater percentage of anabolic compared to catabolic cells. This means during these years our bodies are able to develop and build at a faster rate than what they are being broken down at. Research shows us that this process reverses somewhere in our early to mid-thirties, at which point our bodies begin breaking down faster than what they are building up. This is a physiological fact but building muscle after 30’s even into our 60’s 70’s and 80’s is still very much fair game. Age just slows our ability to build muscle it doesn’t stop it. That is why it is so important to build muscle early and continue throughout our lives to continue building muscle. So, let’s use natures gift of youth to develop strong and robust muscles by being physically active and encouraging and providing opportunities for the next generation to do the same.

B) Strength training throughout our whole lives

Just 30minutes of resistance / weight training 3 x / week has shown to increase muscle mass in young and elderly individuals. You heard right increase muscle mass for elderly. Dor years muscle mass increase was considered out of reach for the elderly population, but recent works has found this not to be the case. So, let’s get stuck into resistance training which is now so easily accessible at the gym and build that muscle. You will feel amazing for it I promise.

C) Protein as a priority in our diet

To develop muscle, we need protein. All proteins are made up of a combination of the bodies building blocks called amino acids. There are 20 types of amino acids, our bodies can amazingly produce 11 of these. For the remaining 9, which we call Essential Amino Acids (EAA’s), and which our body’s cannot produce, we are 100% reliant on our dietary sources. To add to this, for our bodies to build muscle we rely almost entirely on food derived EAA’s like Leucine, Isoleucine & Valine. Foods such as lean meats, eggs, and dairy products such as milk, Greek yogurts and cheese’s are all high in these amino acids. To use an analogy, these EAA’s are essentially the keys to turn on our engine to produce new and repair existing muscle. That is why getting a healthy serve of protein daily is so important.

We hope that this month's Blog on Sarcopenia provides good insight and provokes us all to consider taking a preventative rather than reactive approach to our health. Remember that great lifestyle choices like strength training and adequate protein in our diet is a great way to improve your health and reduce your risk of preventable mortality. If you are looking to take up a strength and conditioning program and are not sure where to start, then take that first step and Book an Appointment with one of our trained professionals. We will be happy to lend a hand and get you the results you are after.