The effects of exercise and protein–energy supplements on body composition and muscle function in frail elderly individuals: a long-term controlled randomised study

作者：Marc Bonnefoy, Catherine Cornu, Sylvie Normand, Florent Boutitie, F. Bugnard, Abderrahmane Rahmani, J. R. Lacour, Martine Laville · 发表于：British Journal Of Nutrition · 年份：2003 · DOI：10.1079/bjn2003836 · 被引用次数：185 · 研究领域：Nutrition and Health in Aging、Cerebral Palsy and Movement Disorders、Muscle metabolism and nutrition

Fighting against inactivity and inadequate nutritional intake are of utmost importance in the elderly. To our knowledge, the few studies which have been performed were conducted for only a short period and the results do not permit formal conclusions to be drawn. We therefore tried to fill this gap in our knowledge by determining whether an intervention combining an acceptable progressive exercise programme and nutritional supplements would be feasible for a long-term period in the very frail elderly, and would bring about concomitant benefits in body composition and muscle power. Accordingly, this exercise and nutritional combination was assessed in the frail elderly in a 9-month randomised trial with a factorial design. Fifty-seven elderly volunteers over 72 years, from sixteen retirement homes in Lyon, France participated in the study. Dietary supplements were compared with placebo, and physical exercise was compared with memory training. Main outcome measures were fat-free mass (FFM) and muscle power. FFM was determined by labelled water, and muscle power was measured by a leg-extensor machine. At 9 months, the compliance was 63 % for exercise sessions, and 54 % for nutritional supplements. In patients with dietary supplements, muscle power increased by 57 % at 3 months (P=0.03), and showed only a tendency at 9 months; although FFM increased by 2.7 % at 9 months, the difference was not significant (P=0.10). Exercise did not improve muscle power at 9 months, but improved f...