In a study from the University of Melbourne and elsewhere, scientists confirm that exercise and diet are key to healthy aging.
While many people are aware humans typically lose strength and mobility as they age, fewer realize this is not inevitable and can largely be prevented by diet and appropriate exercise.
The team says this age-related loss of strength and mobility is known as sarcopenia in which, from about the age of 30, muscles begin losing their youthful bulk.
While establishing clear guidelines for diagnosing sarcopenia is important, it was pleasing to see that clinicians, researchers, and consumers agreed that exercise and diet are the cornerstones of healthy aging.
But knowledge of Sarcopenia remains low among both public and health professionals alike.
There are numerous causes of sarcopenia, with age being the most common. Inflammation as we age, is thought to play a key role. Illness, such as COVID-19 or influenza infection, can also speed up muscle loss.
In the study, the team developed comprehensive guidelines for sarcopenia prevention and management in Australia and New Zealand.
They found the key to sarcopenia treatment is known as progressive resistance training (PRT), which involves a gradual, repeated, and targeted increase in weight or ‘resistance’ over time.
A healthy diet includes adequate protein and calorie intake; the building blocks and fuel to optimize the effects of PRT.
With the support of a doctor and allied health professionals (such as exercise physiologists, physiotherapists and dietitians), publicly funded exercise and diet plans can be developed that match consumer preferences.
The team reported that in their study, consumer experts shared different opinions from topic experts on their preferred duration of an exercise consultation, where they’d like to undertake exercise, and what outcomes were most important to them.
They recommend anyone concerned about sarcopenia should speak with their health provider and get moving.
If you care about health, please read studies about exercise that is vital to improving longevity in older people, and this dieting method could help increase longevity.
For more information about health, please see recent studies about vaccine that can block COVID-19 and variants, plus other coronaviruses, and results showing this type of exercise may slow down bone aging.
The study was conducted by Dr. Jesse Zanker et al.
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