Strength training may help keep seniors safe, according to a study of about 3,000 men and women ages 70 to 80. Researchers found that those with poor physical functioning (measured by walking speed and the ability to stand up from a chair without assistance), less strength, and low muscle density were at a greater risk of being hospitalized over a five-year period than their stronger peers. The researchers also discovered that participants with the lowest muscle density—a ratio of fat to lean tissue—were 51 percent more likely to be hospitalized than the group with the highest muscle density. According to the study, strength training may help older adults boost muscle density while keeping them out of the hospital.
Source: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, August 2009