Seniors with low muscle strength die earlier
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* Julia Haskins

Older people with weak muscles are 50 percent more likely to die earlier, according to a study released in July in the *Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences*.

Using data on U.S. adults ages 65 and older from the 2006-2014 Health and Retirement Study, researchers looked at clinical muscle weakness and early mortality over the nine-year observation period. While previous research on muscle weakness had largely focused on white populations, the current study used a nationally representative dataset that includes racial and ethnic minorities, said lead researcher Kate Duchowny, MD, MPH, a postdoctoral scholar fellow in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California-San Francisco.

Findings showed that seniors who were classified as weak were 50 percent more likely than their peers with greater strength to die earlier. The results support previous research linking muscle weakness to increased risk of diabetes and metabolic syndrome, among other health complications.

The study noted that people with muscle weakness may fall into a “negative feedback loop,” as they struggle to be physically active and therefore may have worse health outcomes. In addition, the findings suggested that muscle weakness does not immediately result in poor health, “but rather may initiate a cascade of negative health events with a compromised survival in later life,” the study said.

With muscle weakness a risk factor for premature mortality, it is critical that providers be able to assess muscle strength in patients. Using measurement tools is the first step toward implementing appropriate interventions for patients with muscle weakness.

“As a starting point, we need to have the proper screening tools as a way to flag those individuals who may be most at risk” of muscle loss, Duchowny told *The Nation’s Health*.

Muscle weakness can be assessed through measurements of hand grip strength, in which a device called a dynamometer is squeezed to determine the user’s strength in kilograms. Hand grip strength is linked to cardiovascular and all-cause mortality, the study said.

Grip strength assessments are mostly used in survey measurements and in exercise physiology but are not commonplace in general clinical settings when looking at the individual health of patients, Duchowny said. However, measuring hand grip strength using simple tools such as dynamometers can provide important information about a patient’s health status.

“It gives us a pretty robust picture of how an individual may be aging over time without invoking any expensive tests or diagnostic tools,” Duchowny said.

Once the degree of muscle weakness has been established, patients should be followed over time so that they can take part in interventions such as muscle resistance training, aerobic training and general physical activity, she said. Fortunately, even moderate muscle resistance training and other forms of exercise need not be overly strenuous to improve muscle strength.

“Even just a little bit can do a lot in terms of preventing declines in muscle health and promoting longevity,” Duchowny said.

For more information, visit [https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/gly169](https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/gly169).

*   Copyright The Nation’s Health, American Public Health Association