Predictive Roles of Basal Metabolic Rate and Body Water Distribution in Sarcopenia and Sarcopenic Obesity: The link to Carbohydrates

Body composition characteristics and influencing factors of different parts of sarcopenia in elderly people: A community-based cross-sectional survey

Objectives

This study aims to describe the differences in body composition among different body parts of the elderly in the community and its relationship with sarcopenia.

Methods

Elderly people aged ≥65 underwent bioelectric impedance analysis testing and were categorized into a sarcopenia group, possible sarcopenia group, and control group. The characteristics of body composition indicators in different parts and their relationship with different stages of sarcopenia were analyzed.

Results

The sarcopenia group illustrated the lowest values of FFM, FFM%, BFM, BFM%, ICW, and limb PhA, along with higher ECW/TBW in the trunk and left leg compared to the control group. The possible sarcopenia group showed lower FFM% in limbs and trunk, and higher BFM% compared to the control group. Gender differences in elderly body composition were observed, with an increase in BFM% in various body parts posing a risk factor for possible sarcopenia in elderly males, whereas an increase in BFM% except in the left arm was a protective factor for sarcopenia in elderly females.

Conclusion

The body composition of the elderly in the community varied significantly in different stages of sarcopenia and genders, which correlated with sarcopenia.

Mechanism of Acupuncture in Treating Obesity: Advances and Prospects

Obesity is a common metabolic syndrome that causes a significant burden on individuals and society. Conventional therapies include lifestyle interventions, bariatric surgery, and pharmacological therapies, which are not effective and have a high risk of adverse events. Acupuncture is an effective alternative for obesity, it modulates the hypothalamus, sympathetic activity and parasympathetic activity, obesity-related hormones (leptin, ghrelin, insulin, and CCK), the brain-gut axis, inflammatory status, adipose tissue browning, muscle blood flow, hypoxia, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) to influence metabolism, eating behavior, motivation, cognition, and the reward system. However, hypothalamic regulation by acupuncture should be further demonstrated in human studies using novel techniques, such as functional MRI (fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET), electroencephalogram (EEG), and magnetoencephalography (MEG). Moreover, a longer follow-up phase of clinical trials is required to detect the long-term effects of acupuncture. Also, future studies should investigate the optimal acupuncture therapeutic option for obesity. This review aims to consolidate the recent improvements in the mechanism of acupuncture for obesity as well as discuss the future research prospects and potential of acupuncture for obesity.

Causal Roles of Lifestyle, Psychosocial Characteristics, and Sleep Status in Sarcopenia: A Mendelian Randomization Study

BACKGROUND

Many studies reported that lifestyle, psychosocial characteristics, and sleep status related to sarcopenia, although few studies provided evidence of causal relationships between them.

METHODS

The data used in our study were from UK Biobank, FinnGen Release 8, and large genome-wide association study meta-analyses. Two-sample Mendelian randomization was conducted to identify the causal associations of 21 traits of lifestyle, psychosocial characteristics, and sleep status with 6 traits of sarcopenia. Benjamini-Hochberg correction was performed to reduce the bias caused by multiple tests. Risk factor analyses were performed to explore the potential mechanism behind the exposures.

RESULTS

Mendelian randomization analyses after adjustment proved the causal roles of coffee intake, education years, smoking, leisure screen time, and moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity during leisure time in sarcopenia was proven although providing no significant evidence for causal roles for carbohydrates intake, protein intake, alcohol, and sleep status in sarcopenia.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results strongly support that coffee intake, education years, smoking, leisure screen time, and moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity during leisure time played significantly causal roles in sarcopenia, which may provide new intervention strategies for preventing the development of sarcopenia.

The causal relationship between sarcopenic obesity factors and benign prostate hyperplasia

Background

Both benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and sarcopenic obesity (SO) are common conditions among older adult/adults males. The prevalent lifestyle associated with SO is a significant risk factor for the development of BPH. Therefore, we investigated the causal relationship between SO factors and BPH.

Method

The instrumental variables for SO factors were selected using the inverse variance-weighted method, which served as the primary approach for Mendelian randomization analysis to assess the causal effect based on summary data derived from genome-wide association studies of BPH.

Result

The increase in BMR (OR = 1.248; 95% CI = (1.087, 1.432); P = 0.002) and ALM (OR = 1.126; 95% CI = (1.032, 1.228); P = 0.008) was found to be associated with an elevated risk of BPH. However, no genetic causality between fat-free mass distribution, muscle mass distribution, and BPH was observed.

Conclusion

Our findings indicate that a genetic causal association between BMR, ALM and BPH. BMR and ALM are risk factors for BPH. The decrease in BMR and ALM signified the onset and progression of SO, thus SO is a protective factor for BPH.

Effect of basal metabolic rate on osteoporosis: A Mendelian randomization study

Purpose

Basal metabolic rate may play a key role in the pathogenesis and progression of osteoporosis. We performed Mendelian random analysis to evaluate the causal relationship between basal metabolic rate and osteoporosis.

Methods

Instrumental variables for the basal metabolic rate were selected. We used the inverse variance weighting approach as the main Mendelian random analysis method to estimate causal effects based on the summary-level data for osteoporosis from genome-wide association studies.

Results

A potential causal association was observed between basal metabolic rate and risks of osteoporosis (odds ratio = 0.9923, 95% confidence interval: 0.9898-0.9949; P = 4.005^{e - 09}). The secondary MR also revealed that BMR was causally associated with osteoporosis (odds ratio = 0.9939, 95% confidence interval: 0.9911-0.9966; P = 1.038^{e - 05}). The accuracy and robustness of the findings were confirmed using sensitivity tests.

Conclusion

Basal metabolic rate may play a causal role in the development of osteoporosis, although the underlying mechanisms require further investigation.