None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Age-related muscle wasting and a decline in cognitive function have both been implicated in the development and progression of many chronic diseases, including falls and dementia. Over the next 40 years it is estimated that nearly 25% of the Australian population will be aged over 65 years, and thus there is an urgent need to identify safe and effective strategies that can simultaneously optimise muscle and cognitive health and function in the elderly. Progressive resistance training is recommended as one approach that can improve muscle health in older adults, but there is a growing body of evidence indicating that the benefits of progressive resistance training may be dependent on adequate dietary protein. It has also been suggested that certain dietary factors, including dietary protein and vitamin D, along with exercise may improve cognitive health and function. Thus, this study aims to investigate whether lean red meat consumption three days per week when combined with progressive resistance training, can enhance both muscle and cognitive health and function in the elderly. We believe that the findings from this study will form the basis for more precise nutrition and exercise guidelines for the management and prevention of age-related changes in muscle health as well as cognitive and memory function in older people.
Interventions
A 6-month community-based randomised controlled trial with a 6-month follow-up in which participants aged 65 years and over will participate in a progressive resistance training program and consume a protein enriched diet achieved through the consumption of lean red meat on 3 days per week, or a carbohydrate control diet. The exercise program will be an individually tailored and supervised community-based program in which participants will undertake progressive resistance training three times a
A 6-month community-based randomised controlled trial with a 6-month follow-up in which participants aged 65 years and over will participate in a progressive resistance training program and consume a protein enriched diet achieved through the consumption of lean red meat on 3 days per week, or a carbohydrate control diet. The exercise program will be an individually tailored and supervised community-based program in which participants will undertake progressive resistance training three times a week. Each session will last 45-60 minutes and target all major muscle groups. Participants will perform 3 sets of 8-12 repetitions at a weight that cannot be lifted for more than 8-12 repetitions. Training will be made progressively more challenging by incorporating the principle of progressive overload (increments of 2-10% weekly). All training will be supervised by accredited exercise trainers. Participants in the lean red meat group will consume approximately 160g (cooked) of lean red meat three days per week on each training day while participants in the carbohydrate control group will consume at least half a cup of carbohydrates. Participants in both groups take one 1000 IU vitamin D3 capsule daily for the duration of the study. Exercise logs and completed exercise cards will be regularly checked by the trainers and will be used to monitor exercise adherence. Adherence to the lean red meat and carbohydrate diets will be monitored using a daily food calendars and compliance to the supplements will be monitored by a capsule count from bottles returned at 6 months. At the completion of the 6-month intervention, a follow-up assessment will be conducted 3 and 6 months post-intervention completion to evaluate any long-term behavioural changes with regard to maintaining participation in exercise and/or continuing to follow the intervention diet.
Sponsors
Deakin University
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Prevention
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
65 Years to 90 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
Community-dwelling men and women aged 65 years and over. All participants enrolled in the study must also have received approval from their local physician to participate in the community-based intervention.
Exclusion criteria
Participants will be excluded on the following criteria: 1) aged <65 years; 2) current or prior participation in resistance exercise (>1 week) and/or moderate-intensity physical activity greater than or equal to 150 minutes per week in the past 3 months; 3) acute or terminal illness, including current (treated or untreated) cancer or surgery/cessation of chemotherapy/radiotherapy less than 12-months ago; 4) history of a recent low trauma fracture with functional impairment that would limit participation in the exercise program; 5) body mass index (BMI) >40; 6) use of insulin to treat diabetes; 7) chronic liver disease, coeliac or inflammatory bowel disease, including ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease; 8) recent use of corticosteroids (past 6 months); or 9) inability to commit to the study and its requirements. Participants will not be excluded if they were currently taking vitamin D supplements, but will be asked to take the vitamin D that was provided as part of the study. Eligible participants will then be screened using the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire (SPMSQ) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) to evaluate whether they are cognitively healthy and have no signs of depression. Those with a score of greater than two on the SPMSQ and/or a score of greater than six on the GDS will be excluded from the study. Participants that remained eligible will then be required to obtain approval from their local doctor to clear them of any contraindicated medical conditions to exercise, based upon American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) guidelines, to participate in the program. Finally, participants will be asked to provide a fasted, morning blood sample to confirm that their estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR) was >45 mL/min/1.73m2.
Outcome results
None listed