Vitamin E & Atrophy

As your body ages, physical changes take place that are sometimes beyond your control. But when it comes to sarcopenia, the muscle atrophy that is common in older people, research reveals that positive lifestyle choices such as exercise and good nutrition can make a profound difference in maintaining and rebuilding lean muscle mass.

Sarcopenia

Sarcopenia is the clinical name for muscle atrophy, also known as muscle-wasting disease. Mayo Clinic endocrinologist K. Sreekumran Nair has conducted research into the physiology behind sarcopenia. "One of the first things that happens as people age is there is a decline in muscle mass, muscle strength, and endurance," Nair says. Less muscle leads to fatigue, decreased physical activity and the onset of age-related diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is an antioxidant vitamin that may be linked to sarcopenia. According to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University, vitamin E is a family of eight antioxidants, of which alpha-tocopherol is the only form that is actively maintained in the human body. It is alpha-tocopherol's job to maintain the integrity of cell membranes throughout the body and to prevent the oxidation of low density lipoproteins, protecting you from heart disease. Severe vitamin E deficiency can lead to impaired balance and coordination, injury to the sensory nerves, muscle weakness and damage to the retina of the eye.

Nutrition and Muscle Atrophy

A 2003 study of elderly women conducted by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions in Baltimore found a correlation between higher circulating blood plasma levels of vitamin E and muscle strength, supporting the hypothesis that there is a link between oxidative stress and sarcopenia. Another study published in the February 2007 issue of the journal "Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics" supports the notion that sarcopenia is a product of oxidative stress and that a diet high in fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains provides the most usable forms of antioxidants necessary to protect against sarcopenia.

Other Factors

In addition to nutritional support, studies conducted by the American College of Sports Medicine indicate that exercise is important to ameliorate sarcopenia. In a two-year study, 113 elderly male and female subjects engaged in weight training twice weekly, performing three sets of 10 to 12 repetitions of exercises for all muscle groups. Both men and women realized steady increases in strength over the two-year period. The ACSM concluded that older muscle is just as responsive to exercise as young muscle and that resistance exercise is effective in reversing sarcopenia in the elderly.