A Call to Action: Now Is the Time to Screen Elderly and Treat Osteosarcopenia, a Position Paper of the Italian College of Academic Nutritionists MED/49 (ICAN-49)

Abstract

Aging is a risk factor for the development of multiple chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, cancer and dementia. Life expectancy has increased in certain countries but this phenomenon is associated with a reduction of years of healthy life. Aging is associated with a number of physical and functional changes, especially sarcopenia. Sarcopenia is a clinical condition associated with a decrease in skeletal muscle and muscle strength, however, sarcopenia is a reversible condition. On the basis of the current scientific literature, sarcopenia could more appropriately capture an individual’s vulnerability to negative health-related outcomes since it represents an early form of the chronic diseases. Recognition of this clinical condition can improve the management of older individuals in many different clinical settings. Despite the limitations of the indirect methods used to study body composition, the Italian College of the Academic Nutritionists ME/49 recommends that health authorities and health professionals around the world should make a greater effort to diagnose sarcopenia earlier and to manage it more effectively. In line with the development of cancer screening, the use of two diagnostic tools for sarcopenia (BIA and DXA) should be implemented.

Sarcopenia and Appendicular Muscle Mass as Predictors of Impaired Fasting Glucose/Type 2 Diabetes in Elderly Women

“…In fact, previous studies showed that physical activity had a positive effect on muscle mass and function in elderly individuals [78,79]. Furthermore, protein intake was associated with a low risk of sarcopenia [60,80,81]. As previously reported [16], overweight/obese older individuals would likely benefit more from losing excess adiposity than building muscle mass, while normal-weight people would likely benefit more from maintenance or building muscle.…”

“…All these previous findings agree with our results demonstrating an important role of ASMM in predicting IGF/T2D in elderly women. As skeletal muscle is responsible for the majority of postprandial glucose disposal in the body, dysfunction of this part of the body might result in substantial whole-body metabolic disorders [60]. Physical inactivity, which is a common feature of aging, is associated with a decline in mitochondrial oxidative function in muscle [61].…”

Advances in Phenotyping Obesity and in Its Dietary and Pharmacological Treatment: A Narrative Review

“…Because of the great advantages offered by imaging tools in research and clinics, the focus of clinicians is now moving to powerful imaging techniques such as computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), or other techniques such as bioimpedance analysis (BIA) and ultrasound (US) to more accurately measure FM ( 38 ). Although some of the above methods can be expensive, in some cases invasive, and not readily accessible, they are more accurate at measuring body fat, and thus better at predicting the risk of obesity-related health issues.…”

FNDC5 polymorphism influences the association between sarcopenia and liver fibrosis in adults with biopsy-proven non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

“…Skeletal muscle is responsible for the majority of the body's postprandial glucose disposal, and insulin mediates GLUT-4 glucose uptake in skeletal muscle. Therefore, the potential mechanisms linking sarcopenia to NAFLD may involve skeletal muscle insulin resistance (32) . The findings of our research also suggest another possible mechanism.…”