Climate Change and Sarcopenia: Mechanisms, Vulnerabilities, and Public Health Implications
Abstract
This review explores the emerging relationship between climate change and sarcopenia, a progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength that contributes to frailty and disability in aging populations. It aims to synthesize current evidence on how climate-related stressors may influence muscle health and accelerate sarcopenia onset. We conducted a comprehensive literature review integrating findings from epidemiological studies, mechanistic research, and public health reports. Key climate stressors, including heat stress, air pollution, ultraviolet radiation changes, extreme weather events, and food insecurity, were examined for their biological and environmental impacts on muscle physiology. Vulnerable populations and geographic disparities were also analyzed. Climate stressors impair muscle health through distinct pathways: heat stress activates inflammatory and catabolic signaling; air pollution induces oxidative damage and mitochondrial dysfunction; reduced ultravoilet exposure compromises vitamin D synthesis; and food insecurity limits access to protein and micronutrients. These factors interact with aging physiology, exacerbating muscle decline. Older adults, women, and individuals in tropical, urban, or high-altitude regions are disproportionately affected due to physiological and socioeconomic vulnerabilities. Climate change is a modifiable risk factor for sarcopenia. Integrating environmental indicators into sarcopenia screening, promoting climate-resilient…
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