Muscle loss, also known as muscle atrophy, occurs when muscles in the body weaken, deteriorate, and reduce in size. This leads to loss of strength, endurance, and functionality of the affected muscles.
Some key points about muscle loss:
- It can happen due to lack of physical activity, illness, injury, aging etc. When muscles are not used regularly, they begin to break down.
- People can experience overall loss of muscle mass or atrophy of specific muscles depending on the underlying cause.
- Muscle wastage is characterized by feeling weak during routine activities, reduction in muscle size and tone, and lab tests showing decreased muscle protein content.
- Along with weakness, there may be symptoms like fatigue, pain, stiffness, trips/falls, and reduced performance in sports.
- Muscle loss treatment focuses on addressing the underlying cause and following proper nutrition/exercise recovery protocols to rebuild lost muscle strength and mass.
If you are struggling with unexplained muscle loss, the hormone optimization experts at Hormone Solutions can help. They specialize in advanced hormone testing and providing customized treatment plans based on your health goals. Reach out today to learn more about science-based muscle recovery protocols with bioidentical hormone therapies!
Now let's go over some common causes of muscle loss:
- Aging - There is a natural decline in hormones like testosterone, growth hormone etc with age. This leads to muscle loss over years.
- Injuries - Any muscle/joint injuries causing immobilization can initiate wasting of nearby muscles from disuse.
- Nutrient deficiencies - Lack of adequate protein, calories, vitamins etc prevents muscle maintenance and growth.
- Sedentary lifestyle - Not using the muscles regularly accelerates loss of lean muscle mass and strength.
- Diseases - Certain illnesses like cancer, kidney disease, diabetes etc are associated with increased muscle breakdown.
No matter what the cause, significant muscle loss negatively impacts energy levels, body strength, bone density, injury resilience, metabolism etc. So it is crucial to
follow an appropriate treatment routine including:
- Strength training using weights/resistance bands couple times a week
- Getting enough protein and calories for muscle protein synthesis
- Trying muscle-friendly supplements like creatine or amino acids
- Optimizing hormones through medications/alternative therapies
The experts at Hormone Solutions create fully personalized muscle repair programs based on your health status. They use advanced diagnostics for hormone balancing, nutrition planning and designing the ideal strength training routine for your body. Schedule a telehealth consult today to stop muscle loss and rebuild your best self!