Research

Mixed

Sarcopenia (defined by low handgrip strength and/or low muscle mass) is associated with a significantly higher long-term risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF) in Caucasian populations, independent of genetic predisposition and lifestyle factors.

Prioritize resistance training and adequate protein intake to maintain muscle mass and strength, especially if you are female or under 65, as these groups showed a stronger link between muscle loss and heart rhythm issues. Regular assessment of handgrip strength and muscle mass can serve as an early warning system for cardiovascular risk.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
In conclusion, sarcopenia was associated with a high long-term risk of AF in Caucasians, supporting sarcopenia as a new independent risk factor of AF.
Yiyang Tang et al. · Aging Cell · 2024

Why this rating

Large prospective cohort (n=384,433), long follow-up (median 12.56 years), robust sensitivity analyses, but observational design limits causal inference.

Source

Association of sarcopenia with the long‐term risk of atrial fibrillation: A prospective cohort study

Yiyang Tang et al. · Aging Cell · 2024

DOI 10.1111/acel.14198

cohort · n=384433Cited 19×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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