A recent study suggests that individuals with higher muscle mass may experience less cognitive decline as they age. This highlights a potential concern regarding weight-loss medications that may lead to muscle loss alongside fat reduction.
While reducing abdominal fat seems beneficial for maintaining a youthful brain, preserving muscle is suggested to play a significant role in overall brain health. This research was unveiled at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.
The study comes amid growing discussions about the long-term effects of GLP-1 medications like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro, which are increasingly used for weight management.
“Achieving fat loss, particularly visceral fat, while keeping muscle is key to enhancing brain health and cognitive longevity based on our findings,” stated Cyrus Raji, the lead researcher and an associate professor of radiology and neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in Missouri.
He added, “Our findings could guide future research to identify the best dosing strategies for GLP-1s to optimize both physical and cognitive health outcomes.”
The study involved 1,164 healthy participants, averaging slightly over 55 years old. Researchers assessed brain ageing through structural MRI scans and paired this data with whole-body MRI scans to evaluate muscle mass and visceral fat levels.
Using artificial intelligence algorithms, the researchers analyzed how various factors, including subcutaneous fat located just under the skin, related to brain age. Participants with greater muscle mass tended to have younger brain ages, especially if they had a favorable visceral fat-to-muscle ratio. No correlation was found between subcutaneous fat and brain age. It’s worth noting that this research hasn’t undergone full peer review yet, which is a common practice for studies shared at conferences.
Originally designed to treat diabetes, GLP-1 medications are gaining traction for significant weight loss, though many users report concurrent loss of muscle mass. Some studies indicate that lean body mass could represent 15 to 40 percent of total weight lost.
Various pharmaceutical companies are now focused on creating a new generation of obesity treatments that aim to better preserve muscle. The presented research was deemed “powerful” due to its integration of MRI scans with AI-determined brain ages across a substantial sample size, remarked Henry Chung, a lecturer in physiology and nutrition at Essex University. He noted a correlation between increased muscle mass and improvements in metabolism, inflammation, and overall aging.
Chung emphasized the need for caution regarding GLP-1 treatments, underscoring the importance of integrating exercise, particularly resistance training, and sufficient protein consumption during their use.
