Research Square · Feb 18, 2022
Is Calcium the Main Nutrient in the Diet Plan for Sarcopenia among the Elderly? ：A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
By Du Y, Oh C, No JK
Abstract Background: The effect of nutrients such as vitamin D, protein and calcium, to increase muscle mass and stimulate muscle synthesis has been verified. While the latent association between these nutrients and sarcopenia was poorly investigated. Therefore, this study summarized current studies reporting vitamin D, protein and calcium among patients with sarcopenia vs. people without sarcopenia (controls) with meta-analysis to explore their possible relationship. Methods: An electronic search of PubMed and Science Direct from January 1, 1989 to May 30, 2018 was conducted for data collection and meta-analysis of cross-sectional studies was performed. Out of 105,700 initial hits, 6 studies with a total of 6,221 participants (1,156 with sarcopenia vs. 5,065 without) were meta-analyzed. Results: Sarcopenic participants had significantly lower levels of 25(OH)D (SMD = 0.791; 95%CI 0.073, 1.510; p < 0.05; I2 = 98.790%), protein (SMD = 0.574; 95%CI 0.088, 1.060; p < 0.05; I2 = 97.276%) and calcium (SMD =1.258; 95%CI 0.429, 2.087; p < 0.01; I2 = 99.067%) than controls. Conclusions: In conclusion, sarcopenia is associated with intake level of vitamin D, protein and calcium. Among these nutrients, calcium has the greatest impact. Therefore, the significance of calcium to the prevention of sarcopenia should be well-focused.