How strong you are vs how fast you can use your muscles
Muscle Power Versus Strength as a Predictor of Mortality in Middle-Aged and Older Men and Women.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
This study looked at whether being able to use your muscles quickly (power) is more important for living longer than just being strong.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 552 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
This study looked at whether being able to use your muscles quickly (power) is more important for living longer than just being strong.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 552 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Publication
Authors
Araújo CGS, Kunutsor SK, Eijsvogels TMH, Myers J, Laukkanen JA, Hamar D, Niebauer J, Bhattacharjee A, de Souza E Silva CG, Franca JF, Castro CLB
Related Content
Claims (6)
For middle-aged and older adults, how fast your muscles can generate power might be a better sign of how long you'll live than how strong they are — especially in men.
The stronger your upper body muscles are — even just a little bit stronger — the lower your chances of dying from any cause, and this seems to be true no matter how strong you already are.
If middle-aged or older adults don't have much muscle power for their weight — like when pulling motions — they're much more likely to die earlier than those who are stronger, even after accounting for things like belly fat and health conditions.
Muscle power — how fast you can use your muscles — might be a better sign of how long you'll live than just how strong your muscles are, because it shows how well your body can handle real-life movements.
If you're an older adult, having weaker hand grip compared to your weight might be a little linked to a higher chance of dying from any cause, but it doesn't add much info beyond things like blood pressure or smoking.