Abstract
Socioeconomic status (SES), which takes into account household income and education level, is an important factor in the role of muscle strength as a discriminator of sarcopenia. Although the benefits of exercise on muscle strength are well recognized, its influence on people of different SES has not been fully elucidated, informing the aim of this study. A total of 6081 subjects, for which we had complete data on measurements of handgrip strength (HGS) and other relevant variables, were included from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES) VII-3. A multivariable analysis showed that people with a low household income (odds ratio (OR) 1.637, p = 0.005) and low education status (OR 2.351, p < 0.001) had a poor HGS compared to those with a high SES, and that the difference in HGS made by muscle exercise was greater for people with a low household income (OR 7.082 vs. 3.619, p < 0.001) and low education status (OR 14.711 vs. 6.383, p < 0.001). Three-step logistic regression analysis showed that muscle exercise mediated the relationship between muscle strength and low household income (OR from 1.772 to 1.736, z = 2.373, p = 0.017) and low education level (OR from 2.368 to 2.309, z = 2.489, p = 0.012). This study confirmed that exercise improves the negative effect of SES on muscle strength, suggesting the greater importance of muscle exercise for people with a low SES.
Highlights
Sarcopenia is defined as a decrease in muscle mass and strength with aging
According to the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES (IV)), where sarcopenia was defined as appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM)/height2, the prevalence of sarcopenia was 31.2% in men and 8.8% in women over 65 years of age in Korea [1]
Demographic Characteristics of Participants According to handgrip strength (HGS)
Summary
Sarcopenia is defined as a decrease in muscle mass and strength with aging. The prevalence of sarcopenia is increasing worldwide and in Korea, where the prevalence is exacerbated by the aging population. In a study of 2292 older individuals aged 70–79 years, the risk of death increased for every 1 SD decrease in grip strength, even after adjusting for confounding factors, including muscle mass (by DXA) (male hazard ratio = 1.36, female hazard ratio = 1.67) [11]. It appears that muscle strength predicts physical disability better than muscle mass, and its association with death is more robust. This study was performed to assess whether there was a difference in improving muscle strength by exercise according to SES in the general Korean population
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