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The Role of Muscle in Health and Disease

I speak from personal experience when I say that most people think of muscle only in regards to physical activity, regardless of age or health. I remember telling my 95-year-old mother several years ago about an article I was writing titled “The Underappreciated Role of Muscle in Health and Disease” in which I reviewed the central role that skeletal muscle plays in the regulation of metabolism in the body, the support of bone health, greater survival in the case of heart failure and cancer, and even psychological benefit. I explained my work with essential amino acids and how they can help in her daily life by strengthening muscle and improving its functions. She listened very politely, but…

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 Muscle Injuries

Muscle injuries is a broad term encompassing many pathologies and these are common injuries in both elite and amateur athletes as well as in the general population. Skeletal muscle injuries represent a great part of all traumas in sports medicine, with an incidence from 10% to 55% of all sustained injuries. The muscles and muscle groups more frequently involved are the hamstrings, rectus femoris, and the medial head of the gastrocnemius. They should be treated with the necessary precaution since a failed treatment can postpone an athlete’s return to the field with weeks or even months and increase the risk of re-injury.

 What is synthol and why are bodybuilders injecting it into their muscles?

The results are alarming. To borrow writer Clive James’s phrase, synthol users look like a “condom full of walnuts”. To professional bodybuilders, the difference between real muscles and synthol muscles is “comically obvious”. And while the muscles might look bulkier, the results are purely cosmetic. You won’t be able to lift anything heavier than you could before an injection. In fact, there’s a good chance your muscles will be worse off, as you could damage the fibres or restrict their movement.

Articles of Interest

The underappreciated role of muscle in health and disease

Muscle plays a central role in whole-body protein metabolism by serving as the principal reservoir for amino acids to maintain protein synthesis in vital tissues and organs in the absence of amino acid absorption from the gut and by providing hepatic gluconeogenic precursors. Furthermore, altered muscle metabolism plays a key role in the genesis, and therefore the prevention, of many common pathologic conditions and chronic diseases. Nonetheless, the maintenance of adequate muscle mass, strength, and metabolic function has rarely, if ever, been targeted as a relevant endpoint of recommendations for dietary intake

How Artificial Muscles Could Transform the Lives of Some Military Veterans

From pig muscle, scientists are developing an organic material that may help heal volumetric muscle loss.

Muscle is important for good health – here’s how to maintain it after middle age

While researchers aren’t entirely sure why muscle mass decreases so much as we get older, the good news is that we do know regular exercise can help lessen this impact – and can even delay some of this inevitable muscle loss. Regular physical activity is also shown to lower risk of preventable diseases, maintain physical function well into old age, and even improve immune function.

Should You Work Out if Your Muscles Are Sore?

A hard workout can come back to haunt you. When you wake up the next morning and try to get out of bed, everyday motions like rolling over and standing up can make your muscles whine in pain. You might have wanted to exercise again, but now you’re wondering: Can I still work out if I’m this sore? Well, it depends.

Strength training does more than build muscle. Its hidden benefits are massive

Research shows people who do weight training a few days a week live longer. Women get the biggest boost in longevity. Strength training is also good for mood, and it helps protect joints and bones.

Strengthening muscle may be healthier than losing fat

Focusing on strengthening our muscles rather than losing fat may be a better way to protect ourselves from weight-related hazards like diabetes and cardiovascular disease, investigators say.

The isometric secret: 15 ways to get much fitter – without moving a muscle

What are the best exercises to reduce your blood pressure? The plank and the wall sit. Here is how to do them – and some other great poses – whatever your current fitness level

The muscle miracle: can I build enough in my 60s to make it to 100 – even though I’ve never weight-trained?

To live a long and healthy life, you need plenty of muscle. But we all start losing it in our 50s. Can a 60-year-old man build himself up – and maybe even get a little ripped?

Why ‘Unbalanced’ Muscles Can Cause You Pain

Repeatedly doing the same type of activity — whether it’s running, lifting or sitting — can have serious downsides.