Increased Protein Intake Can Stop Loss of Lean Muscle Mass in Elderly

Astonishing Loss of Muscle Mass In Older People. Increased Protein Intake Can Help. Continuing Research On The Importance Of Adequate Protein and Amino Acid Intake To Prevent Sarcopenia Sarcopenia is defined as the loss of muscle mass associated with aging. Bed rest studies reveal a major loss of muscle mass in older people after just a few days of inactivity; Sarcopenia is a big concern for our aging society and must be properly addressed by healthcare practitioners, research scientists are exclaiming. Researchers from the University of Texas medical branch explain "If you put healthy people in their 70s* in bed for 10 days, they can lose 10 percent of their total lean leg mass. That's a tremendous muscle loss." Younger people also lost surprising amounts of muscle after even short periods of enforced activity, they also reported. The researchers have conducted several National Institutes of Health and NASA/National Space Biomedical Research Institute-supported bed-rest studies. "What you get is periods of very rapid muscle loss followed by partial recovery, which can turn a healthy 40-year-old into a frail 70 year old." Giving hospital patients more high-quality proteins with branched chain amino acids could help, they said. But there were also lessons to be learned about the daily dietary intake of quality protein by people from all age groups. Simply adding up the total amount of protein the average person eats per day is not a very useful way of determining whether we are actually getting enough, the researchers emphasize. Although many Americans consume more than enough protein, up to 90 grams a day, they concentrate nearly all of this into their evening meal, with only 10 grams (or none at all) at breakfast,15 grams at lunch and an overwhelming 65 grams at dinner, they explain. Since bodies can only process around 30 grams at one sitting and turn it into muscle, there was minimal sense in packing down 50-60 grams in one meal. A better approach to optimizing daily protein intake is to eat more of it at breakfast and lunch, and less at dinner. They also explain why eating a very small quantity of protein earlier in the day wasn't much use... "If you're eating less than 11grams or so at breakfast, you're not having an effect on protein synthesis: It's just calories. Grazing all day with small amounts of protein is not great." Ideally, they said, we should aim to consume up to 30 grams, three times a day. "We need to include more high-quality proteins at breakfast and lunch to maximize potential for muscle growth. We should consume moderate amounts three times a day in close proximity to physical activity, so you get the synergistic effects of exercise and protein." Why does it matter if we lose muscle mass? Significant loss of muscle mass often goes undetected as muscle is replaced by fat. However, it is a major health concern as populations age, reducing mobility, increasing the risk of falls and fractures, and reducing independence. "Effect of 10 days of bed rest on skeletal muscle in healthy older adults."JAMA 2007;297:1772-1774; "Essential amino acid and carbohydrate supplementation ameliorates muscle protein loss in humans during 28 days bed rest." J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2004;89:4351-4358. This article is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Consult with your doctor or healthcare professional for medical and nutrition advice.