- New research shows that high levels of lean muscle mass could help protect against Alzheimer’s disease.
- However, more research is needed to understand whether this connection is causal.
- To achieve lean muscle mass, experts recommend resistance exercise and a healthy dose of dietary protein.
Previous research demonstrates the connection between
According to a study recently published in Medicine of the BMJ, high levels of lean muscle mass could help ward off Alzheimer’s disease. However, the study authors noted that more research is needed to understand the underlying biological processes.
In this study, researchers collected information on the genetic data, lean muscle mass, cognition and health data of 450,243 participants from the UK Biobank. They then looked for genetic associations between lean muscle mass and genetic variants using a technique known as Mendelian randomization.
The researchers used bioimpedance, an electrical current that flows through the body at different speeds, to measure the amount of lean muscle mass and fat tissue in the arms and legs. They then found 584 genetic variants linked to lean muscle mass, although none of these were found in a region of the genome known to encode a gene associated with increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
However, the researchers found that those people who had high levels of lean muscle mass and associated genetic variants, the more the individuals’ Alzheimer’s risk decreased.
These results were verified in another cohort of 7,329 people with Alzheimer’s disease and 252,879 people without, the researchers measured the amount of lean muscle mass and fat tissue in the torso and throughout the body.
The results showed that lean body mass was linked to better performance on cognitive tasks, but this connection did not explain the protective impact of lean body mass on the development of Alzheimer’s.
This study supports current recommendations for maintaining a healthy lifestyle to prevent dementia. It’s a promising finding that gives patients agency in their neurological health, said Iyas Daghlas, one of the study’s authors Medical News Today.
For later phases, clinical intervention studies are needed to confirm this effect, Daghlas added.
This study aligns well with other recently published research that has shown that there is a significant decline in lean muscle mass and strength in the years prior to a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, said Karen D. Sullivan, Ph.D., ABPP, certified neuropsychologist.
Wanting to go beyond a simple correlation relationship, these researchers wanted to understand the cause and effect between Alzheimer’s risk and muscle mass, he added.
Diseased brain cells in all dementias, including Alzheimer’s, show severe mitochondrial dysfunction; this is what happens when neurons can’t produce enough energy to function or stay viable because of whatever disease is causing dementia, Dr. Sullivan said.
Mitochondrial dysfunction is the common denominator, a shared feature of all diseased biological systems, so it’s probably not just an Alzheimer’s-specific finding.
Mitochondrial dysfunction is also seen in skeletal muscle wasting, as those muscle cells cannot absorb enough, and in several chronic diseases, such as cancer, deconditioning, sepsis, etc. Lean muscle mass is an indicator of healthy mitochondrial function, explained Dr. Sullivan.
When muscle cells or brain cells have healthy, powerful mitochondria to support their function, they thrive. When the opposite is true, they die. We know that decreasing muscle mass reduces quality of life, the risk of falls and fractures, and mortality, added Dr. Sullivan. Now we can probably add cognition to that list.
Proteins, known as myokines, may play a role.
We hypothesize that the association we describe may be mediated by the myokine effect, Daghlas explained.
Myokines are proteins released by muscles that affect other tissues. They have been shown in experimental studies to be induced by exercise and positively affect brain function, he said.
Aside from the potential brain benefits, there are many health benefits to having lean muscle mass.
Dr. Joseph C. Maroon, clinical professor, vice president, and Heindl neuroscientist in the University of Pittsburg’s Department of Neurosurgery, recommends resistance exercise with weights, bands, and pleomorphic exercises.
Also suggests a healthy source of dietary protein, supplementation with B-hydroxy B-methylbutyrate (myHMB).
This is a naturally occurring substance that helps the body build lean muscle mass and manage a healthy weight. B-hydroxy aids in muscle recovery after strenuous exercise, boosts athletic performance, and builds muscle and strength, he said.
The main drivers of muscle mass are the right diet, the right type and frequency of exercise, the right amount of rest, and stress management, noted Dr. Sullivan.
Here are the guidelines it recommends:
Exercise: 4-5 short strength training sessions per week. This will result in more lean muscle mass than 2-3 longer cardio workouts per week.
Diet: Focus on reducing insulin resistance by lowering carbohydrates and increasing protein, the building block of muscle.
Sleep: 8-9 hours a night if continuous or near continuous sleep is required to adequately recover from this type of training.
Stress Management: Chronically high stress can derail any self-improvement plans, with inflammation and blood sugar rising caused by stress hormones like cortisol. High levels of cortisol over time also cause prolonged muscle tension and a buildup of lactic acid which can limit muscle growth. The easiest way to reduce chronic stress is to move your body more, get outside, eat more whole foods, be an assertive communicator, and connect with your purpose.
For this study, the researchers only looked at lean muscle mass. But there are other factors to take into consideration.
The researchers did NOT measure markers of inflammation and insulin resistance, which have higher levels in adipose tissue of the brain-damaging protein, amyloid, Maroon said. This probably reduces the significance of their conclusions.
Also, while their positive finding was statistically significant, the effect size was modest in lean muscle mass reducing dementia risk and explained only 10 percent of the variance, said Dr. Sullivan.
There is even more research to be done to determine the connection between higher lean muscle mass and lower risk of Alzheimer’s.
For now, people with lower muscle mass tend to be obese, which is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes, said Nancy Mitchell, a registered nurse.
We call the brain Alzheimer’s diabetes because high blood glucose is suggested to damage nerve endings in the areas of the brain most affected by cognitive decline. So, it’s possible that the connection really is between a lower risk of obesity and diabetes. This, in itself, could be a limitation to the study because there is still room for more specificity. Correlation does not always mean causation.
Nancy Mitchell, Registered Nurse
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