Association between changes in physical activity and sarcopenia risk in middle-aged and older adults.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the longitudinal relationship between the changes in physical activity in middle-aged and older persons and sarcopenia risk utilizing data from a nationally representative population in China. Methods: This study included 2831 participants (44.5 % men, 55.5 % women, mean age 61.86 ± 9.33 years). Participants were divided into active to active (A-A, n = 1367), inactive to active (I-A, n = 455), active to inactive (A-I, n = 553), and inactive to inactive (I-I, n = 456) groups based on changes in physical activity between 2011 and 2015. Sarcopenia and sarcopenia risk indicators were determined using the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 consensus. One-way analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, and logistic regression analyses were used to determine the association between the changes in physical activity and sarcopenia risk. Results: Handgrip strength tended to have a significant difference, and walking speed and 5-time chair stand test had significant differences among the A-A, I-A, A-I, and I-I groups (all p < 0.05). Compared to the I-I group, the likelihood of sarcopenia was lower in the A-A (OR: 0.65, 95 % CI: 0.52-0.81) and I-A (OR: 0.67, 95 % CI: 0.51-0.87) groups, the likelihood of poor muscle strength was lower in the A-A (OR: 0.61, 95 % CI: 0.50-0.76) and I-A (OR: 0.65, 95 % CI: 0.50-0.83) groups, and the rate of low physical performance was lower in the A-A (OR: 0.33, 95 % CI: 0.26-0.41), I-A (OR: 0.38, 95 % CI: 0.29-0.50) and A-I (OR: 0.55, 95 % CI: 0.43-0.71) groups after controlling for covariates. Conclusions: Middle-aged and older people who remain or become physically active have a lower risk of sarcopenia, poor muscle strength, and low physical performance. Conversely, those who stop being physically active have a higher risk of sarcopenia, poor muscle strength, and low physical performance.