Why Is HMB Important for Aging Muscles?

Protein is usually the first and most common source of nutrients that we turn to, in our effort to keep our bodies going strong and healthy as we age, alongside routine exercise. Why is this so?

Our muscles go through muscle protein synthesis, a naturally occurring process where new muscle is produced to repair those that are damaged as we keep moving throughout the day. The goal is to ensure that muscle breakdown isn't happening faster than building.

If our bodies are under stress or encounter inflammation, our muscles too will break down rapidly and this is when we lose muscle mass. While younger people are typically able to offset natural muscle breakdown, this balance can shift with age as the body becomes less adept at using protein for muscle synthesis.⁴

This breakdown can accelerate with age, illness, and immobility. Eventually, this will affect our mobility, balance, posture and even strength and energy.

People can lose a lot of muscle in a short amount of time, noting that this kind of muscle loss is often associated with delayed recovery from illness, slow wound healing and reduced quality of life. The solution is to get ahead of muscle loss before it accelerates.⁴

So, what can you do to maintain muscle health? Here’s where HMB might be able to help.

What is HMB?

HMB stands for beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate, and as scientific as that sounds, its purpose is easier to understand when you realise it’s been part of our diet for a long time.

HMB is naturally produced in small amounts in foods like milk and Greek yogurt, soybeans, beef and chicken, avocado, grapefruit, cauliflower and catfish. Unfortunately, these small amounts are difficult to support muscle health through diet alone. Instead, HMB can be found in nutritional supplements.

HMB may act as a gateway to help keep our muscles in balance by slowing muscle breakdown. In fact, HMB has been shown to help preserve muscle mass in healthy older adults. Maintaining a well-balanced diet rich in protein and exercising regularly also support the natural balance.⁴

How to Obtain HMB

Getting more HMB from our diet naturally isn’t always easy. On a good day, even protein-packed foods can leave adults coming up short. However, it is NOT easy to obtain our daily requirement of HMB from the food we eat.

Here’s a comparison:

By incorporating HMB supplements into our daily diet, we can support our muscle health.

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References:

1. Berton, et al. 2015. PLoS ONE 10(11):e01417757. Doi:10.1371 / journal.pone.0141757;
2. Argilés JM et al. J Am Med Dir Assoc 2016.
3. Based on latest Abbott Regional HCP Tracker for ADULT NUTRITION conducted by IQVIA, Apr – Sep 2019 among 191 HCP in Pen. Malaysia
4. What Is HMB And Why Could It Be Important For Aging Muscles?. 2018. [online] Available at: <https://www.nutritionnews.abbott/healthy-living/aging-well/why-hmb-is-important-for-aging-muscles/> [Accessed 27 August 2020].

*Ensure Gold with HMB and protein that helps build and repair muscle tissue

**When taken twice daily and consumed along with light daily exercise