Skeletal muscle health and cognitive function: a narrative review

Published online December 29, 2020 . doi: 10.3390 / ijms22010255

Commentary

Sarcopenia is the age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and function.

It involves both inactivity, malnutrition, reduced neurological drive, and complex genetic and modifiable risk factors.

And cognitive decline refers to the loss or impairment of mental and intellectual functions.

Contracting skeletal muscle is a major source of neurotrophic factors, including brain-derived neurotrophic factors that regulate brain synapses, and skeletal muscle activity has important immune and redox effects that modify brain function and reduce muscle catabolism.

Identifying the general risk factors and underlying mechanisms of sarcopenia and cognition may enable the development of targeted interventions to slow or reverse sarcopenia and specific forms of cognitive decline.

This study will provide a critical assessment of the literature on the relationship between skeletal muscle health and cognition.

The literature suggests that sarcopenia and cognitive decline share a pathophysiological pathway and indicates that aging is responsible for both skeletal muscle deterioration and cognitive decline.

Furthermore, lifestyle risk factors such as lack of exercise, poor diet, and smoking are common to both disorders, so their potential role in the muscle-brain relationship needs to be investigated.

In this way, aging is implicated in both skeletal muscle deterioration and cognitive decline.

Furthermore, lifestyle risk factors such as lack of exercise, poor diet, and smoking are common to both disorders, and their potential role in the muscle-brain relationship needs to be investigated.