Special nutrition intervention is required for muscle protective efficacy of physical exercise in elderly people at highest risk of sarcopenia

Abstract

Progressive loss of muscle mass and strength is a physiological consequence of aging, and without interventions, it usually deteriorates into sarcopenia. In this study, the hypothesis that combined special nutritional-physiotherapeutical intervention to prevent or reverse this biological deterioration in elderly people was tested. The effects of the regular resistance muscle training (PT, n = 17) alone and the combined exercise + special nutrition therapy containing whey protein and vitamin D (PT + NT, n = 17) were monitored for 3 months in 34 elderly patients (12 men and 22 women; mean age: 66.47 years) randomly distributed into two groups at a long-term care facility. Physical exercise alone did not result in significant improvement in skeletal muscle mass or strength, whereas combined intervention significantly increased the muscle strength (22.51 ± 2.35 vs. 24.54 ± 2.65,x ± SEM, kg, p = 0.027). When therapeutic responses to the intervention were compared, a significant advantage of PT + NT over PT was found. The same trend was found when the non-significant post-therapeutic alterations (χ 2 test) of the distribution of normal vs. pre-sarcopenic + sarcopenic conditions within the two groups were compared. Combined intervention (PT + NT) is necessary for the efficient protection of the musculature in the high-risk elderly patients.

Strategies for optimising musculoskeletal health in the 21st century

“…A diet rich in antioxidants may provide a useful therapeutic tool for athletes, improving tissue repair, although the optimum dosage is unknown [57]. Combining exercise with a dietary supplement of whey protein fortified with vitamin D is effective at increasing muscle mass and strength in elderly people affected with sarcopenia [58].…”

Taurine Reverses Oxidative Damages and Restores the Muscle Function in Overuse of Exercised Muscle

“…Muscle-induced oxidative damage is often unavoidable and requires therapeutic interventions, e.g., supplementary foods containing antioxidants, that regulate the redox process (Waters et al, 2010;Molnár et al, 2016). However, some of these supplements may reduce the beneficial effects of exogenous antioxidants during strenuous exercise, and selecting a proper supplementary nutrient is necessary to maintain muscle performance (Harty et al, 2019).…”

The Effects of Cow-Milk Protein Supplementation in Elderly Population: Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis

“…Further studies among sarcopenic patients investigated the effect of different nutritional supplements, in association or not with physical activity. The main findings of these studies are the following: during a six-month resistance training (RT) intervention among 80 mobility-limited older adults, 40 g of daily WP supplementation did not add benefit to exercise in improving lean mass, muscle strength and physical function [ 66 ]; a leucine-enriched WP supplement with vitamin D (20 g + 800 IU, twice a day for 13 weeks) was tested versus an iso-caloric dietary supplement, and was superior to placebo in improving muscle mass and lower-extremity function among a large cohort of 380 sarcopenic older adults, even in patients who were unable to exercise [ 67 ]; the association of physical activity with a daily supplementation consisting of WP (22 g), essential amino acids (10.9 g including 4 g of leucine) and vitamin D (100 IU) was more effective than physical activity plus placebo in increasing fat free mass and muscle strength, in improving quality of life and in decreasing inflammation index in 130 sarcopenic elderly people [ 68 ]; the combination of regular resistance muscle training with a nutrition therapy based on an oral supplement offered twice daily (containing 20 g WP, 9 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, 800 IU vitamin D, and a mixture of vitamins, minerals, and fibers per serving) was superior to exercise alone in improving muscle mass and strength, in 34 elderly patients at high risk of sarcopenia [ 69 ]; the combination of RE with different isocaloric shakes containing 12 g of milk protein or 12 g of soy proteins versus placebo (rice milk, considered as non-protein control) had a positive effect on muscle mass, independently from the type of protein source (milk or soy), among 26 sarcopenic men. The same intervention study among 26 overweight sarcopenic men resulted in a decrease in fat mass only in the dairy supplemented group [ 70 , 71 ].…”