Handgrip strength (HGS) is often used as an indicator of overall muscle strength for aging adults, and low HGS is associated with a variety of poor health outcomes including chronic morbidities, functional disabilities, and all-cause mortality. As public health initiatives and programs target the preservation of muscle strength for aging adults, it is important to understand how HGS factors into the disabling process and the sequence of health events that connect low HGS with premature mortality. Such information will help to inform interventions designed to slow the disabling process and improve health outcomes for those at risk for muscle weakness. Further, unraveling the disabling process and identifying the role of weakness throughout the life course will help to facilitate the adoption of HGS measurements into clinical practice for healthcare providers and their patients. The purposes of this article were to (1) highlight evidence demonstrating the associations between HGS and clinically relevant health outcomes, (2) provide directions for future research in HGS and health, and (3) propose a sequence of health-related events that may better explain the role of muscle weakness in the disabling process.
Sedentary behavior and light physical activity were independently associated with markers of cardiometabolic health in young, adult women. Our data suggest that VO2peak and body composition may be important mediators of these associations. Decreasing sedentary behavior and increasing light physical activity may be important for maintaining cardiometabolic health in young, adult women.
Background: Measures of handgrip strength may show promise for detecting cognitive erosion during aging. Objective: To determine the associations between lower handgrip strength and poorer cognitive functioning for aging Americans. Methods: There were 13,828 participants aged at least 50 years from the 2006 wave of the Health and Retirement Study included and followed biennially for 8 years. Handgrip strength was assessed with a hand-held dynamometer and cognitive functioning was assessed with a modified version of the Mini-Mental State Examination. Participants aged <65 years with scores 7-11 had a mild cognitive impairment, ≤6 had a severe cognitive impairment, and ≤11 had any cognitive impairment. Respondents aged ≥65 years with scores 8-10 had a mild cognitive impairment, ≤7 had a severe cognitive impairment, and ≤10 had any cognitive impairment. Separate covariate-adjusted multilevel logistic models examined the associations between lower handgrip strength and any or severe cognitive impairment. A multilevel ordered logit model analyzed the association between lower handgrip strength and poorer cognitive functioning. Results: Every 5-kg lower handgrip strength was associated with 1.10 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.04, 1.15) and 1.18 (CI: 1.04, 1.32) greater odds for any and severe cognitive impairment, respectively. Similarly, every 5-kg lower handgrip strength was associated with 1.10 (CI: 1.05, 1.14) greater odds for poorer cognitive functioning. Conclusions: Measurement of handgrip strength is a simple, risk-stratifying method for helping healthcare providers determine poorer cognitive functioning. Interventions aiming to prevent or delay cognitive dysfunction should also implement measures of handgrip strength as an assessment tool for determining efficacy.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES Examining handgrip strength (HGS) asymmetry and weakness together may extend the predictive capacity of HGS for capturing possible health problems such as cognitive impairment. The purpose of this study was to determine the associations of HGS asymmetry and weakness on lower cognitive functioning in a national sample of aging Americans. DESIGN Longitudinal panel. SETTING Participant residences. PARTICIPANTS The analytic sample included 17,163 Americans aged 65.0 years (standard deviation = 10.1 years) who participated in the 2006 to 2016 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). MEASUREMENTS A handgrip dynamometer was used to measure HGS; weakness was defined as HGS below 26 kg (men) or below 16 kg (women). Persons with HGS above 10% stronger on either hand were considered as having any HGS asymmetry. Those with HGS that was more than 10% stronger on their dominant or nondominant hand were considered as having dominant or nondominant HGS asymmetry, respectively. The Telephone Interview of Cognitive Status determined lower cognitive functioning (≤11 for ages 50‐64 years; ≤10 for ages ≥65 years). Covariate‐adjusted linear mixed‐effects models analyzed the associations of each HGS asymmetry and weakness group on lower cognitive functioning. RESULTS Relative to those with symmetric HGS and no weakness, each HGS asymmetry and weakness group had greater odds for lower cognitive functioning: 1.15 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03‐1.27) for any HGS asymmetry alone, 1.64 (95% CI = 1.21‐2.23) for weakness alone, and 1.95 (95% CI = 1.51‐2.53) for any HGS asymmetry and weakness. Each HGS asymmetry dominance and weakness group also had greater odds for lower cognitive functioning: 1.12 (95% CI = 1.01‐1.25) for asymmetric dominant HGS alone, 1.27 (95% CI = 1.05‐1.53) for asymmetric nondominant HGS alone, 1.64 (95% CI = 1.21‐2.23) for weakness alone, 1.89 (95% CI = 1.39‐2.57) for weakness and asymmetric dominant HGS, and 2.10 (95% CI = 1.37‐3.20) for weakness and asymmetric nondominant HGS. Conclusion The presence of both HGS asymmetry and weakness may predict accelerated declines in cognitive functioning.
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