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Association between 1-Year Changes in Sarcopenia-Related Indicators and Subjective Well-being in Older Adults
Yohei Sawaya1,2, Tamaki Hirose1,2, Takahiro Shiba2,3
1Department of Physical Therapy, School of Health Sciences, International University of Health and Welfare, Otawara, Tochigi, Japan.
Background:
There is limited evidence linking sarcopenia and subjective well-being among older adults requiring long-term care. This study examined longitudinal changes in sarcopenia-related indicators and their association with life satisfaction and happiness.
Methods:
This 1-year longitudinal study was conducted between 2023 and 2025. Participants were 101 older adults (mean age, 80.3±7.0 years; 55 males and 46 females) requiring support or care who used day-care rehabilitation services under the long-term care insurance system and had skeletal muscle mass index (SMI) and handgrip strength records at baseline and 1 year. Subjective well-being was assessed in terms of life satisfaction and happiness, and the participants were grouped accordingly. Group-by-time interactions in 1-year changes in SMI and handgrip strength were analyzed using two-way repeated-measures analysis of covariance adjusted for age and other relevant covariates.
Results:
For changes in SMI, a significant group-by-time interaction was observed between the satisfied (baseline, 6.29±1.07 kg/m²; follow-up, 6.24±1.12 kg/m²) and non-satisfied (baseline, 6.54±1.00 kg/m²; follow-up, 6.31±1.07 kg/m²) groups overall (p=0.048). In sex-stratified analyses, a significant group-by-time interaction was observed among females (p=0.0498) but not among males (p=0.665). No significant group-by-time interaction was observed for handgrip strength according to life satisfaction. When participants were classified by happiness, no significant group-by-time interactions were found for either SMI or handgrip strength.
Conclusion:
Life satisfaction, which reflects multidimensional factors including activities of daily living and psychological status, was suggested to be associated with less decline in skeletal muscle mass among older adults requiring support/care.
