Association of Dietary Vegetable and Fruit Consumption with Sarcopenia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Previous studies have shown contradictory results regarding the association between vegetable and fruit consumption and the risk of sarcopenia. We aimed to evaluate this association using a meta-analysis, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library through July 2023 using related keywords. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated based on the random-effects model. We included 14 observational studies with 11 cross-sectional and three cohort studies involving 6436 sarcopenias among 33,801 participants. Vegetable and fruit consumption were significantly associated with reduced sarcopenia risk (OR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.48 to 0.79; I² = 59.8%). The association was significant in cross-sectional studies (OR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.49 to 0.84; I² = 56.3%; n = 11) but not in cohort studies (OR, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.22 to 1.11; I² = 76.4%; n = 3). Moreover, the association was significant in age ≥60 (OR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.49 to 0.83; I² = 58.0%; n = 10). This meta-analysis suggests that eating vegetables and fruit reduces sarcopenia risk. However, as cohort studies provide a higher level of evidence than case-control studies, further prospective cohort studies should be conducted.