Sarcopenia Causes Loss of Muscle Mass in Older Individuals

Outside of arthritis and memory loss, osteoporosis may get the most attention of any age related disease. Alzheimer's, Osteoporosis, and Sarcopenia are the leading causes of senior citizens needing care in a nursing home. Like Osteoporosis, Sacropenia involves a loss of tissue in the body. While the first is a loss of bone mass, sacropenia is a loss of muscle tissue that occurs as people age.

Despite the threat it poses to the elderly, there are currently no treatments or formal assocations working to spread awareness of the disease. Millions of dollars get poured into research for other geriatric diseases every year. While no official organization of the disease exists yet, various groups are working on raising awareness of the disease. Www.sacropenia.com lists it as one of the 5 greatest health risk, although their does not specify what five other diseases pose the greatest health risks to older Americans.

Dr. Christy Carter, an assistant professor at Florida's Department of aging says, "I think the problem is that people just accept muscle loss as part of aging, but it is a huge and growing health concern."

Scientists do not know why people develop sarcopenia, although a drop in testosterone hormone levels as people get older may contribute.This article on Rajeun.net says that sacropenia can begin in the mid to late twenties, but the problem does not become severe in most people over the age of 60. People who live a sedentary life style lose half a percent of their muscle mass per year. The loss of muscle also results in a correspond loss in strength. For each decade of life after the sixth, the rate at which these losses occur doubles. If no other factor causes death, it kills slowly but will take most of its victims before 100 years of age.