Research

Mixed

Aging is associated with a decline in skeletal muscle mitochondrial capacity, exercise efficiency, and insulin sensitivity, even when habitual physical activity levels are comparable to young adults.

Aging naturally reduces muscle mitochondrial capacity and insulin sensitivity, even if you stay active. This decline contributes to reduced exercise efficiency and physical function, highlighting the importance of targeted exercise training to mitigate these age-related changes.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Aging was associated with a decline in mitochondrial capacity, exercise capacity and efficiency, gait stability, muscle function, and insulin sensitivity, even when maintaining an adequate daily physical activity level.
Lotte Grevendonk et al. · Nature Communications · 2021

Why this rating

Controlled cross-sectional study matching young and older adults for habitual physical activity.

Source

Impact of aging and exercise on skeletal muscle mitochondrial capacity, energy metabolism, and physical function

Lotte Grevendonk et al. · Nature Communications · 2021

DOI 10.1038/s41467-021-24956-2

cross_sectional · n=52Cited 276×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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