What is sarcopenia?
Sarcopenia is progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass, strength, and function with aging. It accelerates after ~30 and accelerates further after 60, leading to frailty, metabolic decline, and increased risk of falls.
Key Drivers
- •Disuse — inactivity accelerates loss
- •Hormonal changes — declining testosterone, growth hormone
- •Inflammation — chronic low-grade inflammation promotes catabolism
- •Nutrition — inadequate protein and resistance stimulus
Why does Sarcopenia matter?
Sarcopenia matters because muscle strength is closely linked to independence as people age. Losing muscle mass and function makes it harder to climb stairs, carry groceries or get up from a chair, and it is associated with a higher risk of falls, fractures and hospitalization.
Muscle is also metabolically active. It is a major site of glucose uptake, so losing it may affect blood sugar regulation. Sarcopenia can occur alongside obesity ("sarcopenic obesity"), so body weight alone does not reveal it.
How is Sarcopenia measured?
Sarcopenia is usually assessed by combining muscle strength, muscle mass and physical performance. Grip strength measured with a handheld dynamometer and the chair-stand test are common strength screens.
Muscle mass is estimated with DXA scans or bioelectrical impedance, and performance is checked with tests such as gait speed. Expert groups in Europe and Asia have published diagnostic criteria with cutoffs, and these differ somewhat between groups. A healthcare professional should interpret results, since other conditions can cause weakness too.
In ONDA Life
The Muscle Metabolic Marker article covers protocols for grip calibration, metabolic overclocking, and recovery peptides to counter sarcopenia.