Anemia represents a global health problem that negatively impacts quality of life in elderly population; however, its impact on the geriatric syndrome of frailty is unclear. We examined the prevalence of anemia among elderly and sought a relationship between hemoglobin and the phenotype of frailty. Baseline hemoglobin quintiles and anemia were assessed in relation to frailty status in a prospective study with 1,933 older community-dwelling adults enrolled in the Study on Aging and Dementia in Mexico (SADEM). Logistic regression was used to model the relationship between frailty and Hb, adjusting for risk factors of frailty, sociodemographic data, cognitive decline, chronic diseases, and some risky habits. Prevalence of frailty was 8.3 %. Frailty risk was highest at the lowest hemoglobin quintile (<14.3 g/dL for men; <13.3 g/dL for women), and 160 (8.3 %) were anemic (<13 g/dL for men; <12 g/dL for women). The relationship between frailty and Hb levels, adjusted for age and sex, observed in the first and fifth quintiles, compared with the fourth quintile, were 1.53 (95 % confidence interval (CI), 1.46-1.60) and 1.05 (95 % CI, 1.01-1.15). After multivariate adjustment, the odds ratios (ORs) were 1.23 (95 % CI, 1.17-1.13) and 1.06 (95 % CI, 1.01-1.11). The association was not diminished by risk factors for frailty (body mass index (BMI), comorbidity, cognitive decline, smoking, alcohol consumption, etc.). In community-dwelling older adults, low hemoglobin concentrations and anemia were independently associated with increased frailty risk. This suggests that mild anemia and low Hb levels are independent, modifiable risk factors for frailty.

The present study demonstrated a high prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in Mexican elderly people living in the community. A relationship between cognitive impairment and the presence of hypothyroidism was also shown, and to a lesser degree in hyperthyroidism.

Variations in levels of some adipokines, myokines, osteokines, hepatokines and inflammatory cytokines contribute to abnormal glucose and lipid metabolism. The aim of this study was to determine the pattern of adiponectin, osteocalcin (OCN), irisin, FGF-21, and MCP-1 according to the body size phenotype of middle-aged women, and their associations with BMI, visceral adipose tissue (VAT), and HOMA-IR. A cross-sectional study in 265 women aged from 40 to 65 years was performed. The biochemical characteristics were evaluated in metabolically healthy normal weight, metabolically unhealthy normal weight, metabolically healthy obese, and metabolically unhealthy obese women. There was an association of OCN with BMI (r = −0.107; p = 0.047); adiponectin with BMI (r = −0.217; p = 0.001), insulin (r = −0.415; p = 0.0001), HOMA-IR (r = −0.429; p = 0.0001), and VAT (r = −0.134; p = 0.025); irisin with BMI (r = 0.604; p = 0.001), insulin (r = 0.446; p = 0.0001), HOMA-IR (r = 0.452; p = 0.0001), and VAT (r = 0.645; p = 0.0001); FGF−21 with insulin (r = −0.337; p= 0.030) and HOMA-IR (r = −0.341; p = 0.03); and MCP-1 with BMI (r = 0.481; p = 0.0001), VAT (r = 0.497; p = 0.001), insulin (r = 0.298; p= 0.001), and HOMA-IR (r = 0.255; p = 0.004). A multivariate analysis showed that an elevation of OCN (OR 1.4 (95%CI 1.06–1.81)) and a reduction of adiponectin (OR 0.9 (0.84–0.96)) were associated factors for a metabolic unhealthy phenotype in normal weight participants. Likewise, higher irisin (OR 1.007 (1.003–1.011)) and MCP-1 (1.044 (1.008–1.083)) were risk factors for a metabolic unhealthy phenotype in woman with obesity. OCN, adiponectin, irisin, FGF-21, and MCP-1 are associated with some metabolic parameters such as BMI, HOMA-IR, and VAT, and could be possible biomarkers of an unhealthy metabolic phenotype in middle-aged women.

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