| dc.description.abstract | Abstract
Background: The population of older adults is increasing exponentially. Promotion of healthy aging and prevention of chronic conditions has become an important issue in the world more than ever. Sarcopenia is a common condition in the older population and is defined as low muscle mass, low muscle strength, and/or low physical performance. Sedentary behavior is one of sarcopenia’s risk factors, and has increased across the globe, especially among elderly people. The association between sedentary behavior and sarcopenia has been investigated in several studies, but it has not been investigated prospectively. The aim of this study is to assess the association between sedentary behavior in middle aged-people and muscular structure and function at older age.
Methods A total of 7281 older adults aged ≥ 70 at HUNT4 and having sedentariness data at HUNT2 were included in this study. Sedentary behavior was assessed in a questionnaire in HUNT2 and muscle structure and function were assessed through associated variables including skeletal muscle mass (measured by Inbody 770) and the short physical performance battery (SPPB) in HUNT4. Linear regression models and ordinal logistic regression models were used to assess the association between sedentary behavior in middle aged-people and muscular structure and function at older age.
Results: The association between sitting time and amount of muscle mass was statistically significant (p =0.008) with regression coefficient of 0.034 kg/hour (95% CI: 0.009 to 0.058). The association between sitting time and SPPB chair rise sub-score was not statistically significant (p=0.809) and the OR was 1.00 (95% CI: 0.99 to 1.08).
Conclusion: No evidence was found of an association between self-reported sitting time in middle-aged Norwegian adults and their muscular function at older age. A statistically significant association was found between sitting time in middle aged Norwegian adults and their muscle mass at older age after adjusting for age, sex, smoking status, educational levels, BMI, and physical activity levels. However, as the regression coefficient was low, this association is considered not be of clinical relevance.
Keyword: sedentary behavior, muscle mass, SPPB, elderly | |
