Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2024 May 15:19:827-841.
doi: 10.2147/CIA.S455736. eCollection 2024.

Non-Pharmacological Strategies for Managing Sarcopenia in Chronic Diseases

Affiliations
Review

Non-Pharmacological Strategies for Managing Sarcopenia in Chronic Diseases

Jiawen Hu et al. Clin Interv Aging. .

Abstract

This article focuses on a range of non-pharmacological strategies for managing sarcopenia in chronic diseases, including exercise, dietary supplements, traditional Chinese exercise, intestinal microecology, and rehabilitation therapies for individuals with limited limb movement. By analyzing multiple studies, the article aims to summarize the available evidence to manage sarcopenia in individuals with chronic diseases. The results strongly emphasize the role of resistance training in addressing chronic diseases and secondary sarcopenia. Maintaining the appropriate frequency and intensity of resistance training can help prevent muscle atrophy and effectively reduce inflammation. Although aerobic exercise has limited ability to improve skeletal muscle mass, it does have some positive effects on physical function. Building upon this, the article explores the potential benefits of combined training approaches, highlighting their helpfulness for overall quality of life. Additionally, the article also highlights the importance of dietary supplements in combating muscle atrophy in chronic diseases. It focuses on the importance of protein intake, supplements rich in essential amino acids and omega-3, as well as sufficient vitamin D to prevent muscle atrophy. Combining exercise with dietary supplements appears to be an effective strategy for preventing sarcopenia, although the optimal dosage and type of supplement remain unclear. Furthermore, the article explores the potential benefits of intestinal microecology in sarcopenia. Probiotics, prebiotics, and bacterial products are suggested as new treatment options for sarcopenia. Additionally, emerging therapies such as whole body vibration training, blood flow restriction, and electrical stimulation show promise in treating sarcopenia with limited limb movement. Overall, this article provides valuable insights into non-pharmacological strategies for managing sarcopenia in individuals with chronic diseases. It emphasizes the importance of a holistic and integrated approach that incorporates exercise, nutrition, and multidisciplinary interventions, which have the potential to promote health in the elderly population. Future research should prioritize high-quality randomized controlled trials and utilize wearable devices, smartphone applications, and other advanced surveillance methods to investigate the most effective intervention strategies for sarcopenia associated with different chronic diseases.

Keywords: chronic disease; inflammation; nutrition; resistance training; sarcopenia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Baeyens JP, Bauer JM, et al. Sarcopenia: European consensus on definition and diagnosis. Age Ageing. 2010;39(4):412–423. doi:10.1093/ageing/afq034 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Sayer AA. Sarcopenia. Lancet. 2019;393(10191):2636–2646. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(19)31138-9 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Pérez-Baos S, Prieto-Potin I, Román-Blas JA, Sánchez-Pernaute O, Largo R, Herrero-Beaumont G. Mediators and patterns of muscle loss in chronic systemic inflammation. Front Physiol. 2018;9:409. doi:10.3389/fphys.2018.00409 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Bahat G, Bauer J, et al. Sarcopenia: revised European consensus on definition and diagnosis. Age Ageing. 2019;48(1):16–31. doi:10.1093/ageing/afy169 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cui H, Wang Z, Wu J, et al. Chinese expert consensus on prevention and intervention for elderly with sarcopenia (2023). AGING Med. 2023;6(2):104–115. doi:10.1002/agm2.12245 - DOI - PMC - PubMed