Prevention of Frailty

Frailty is a loss of physiologic reserve, which makes people susceptible to disability due to minor stresses. Common features of frailty include weakness, weight loss, muscle wasting (sarcopenia), exercise intolerance, frequent falls, immobility, incontinence, and instability of chronic diseases.

Exercise and a healthy diet are recommended for preventing or reducing frailty (see Table 5-2), although evidence of effectiveness is limited. Elderly people who engage in regular aerobic exercise (eg, walking, swimming, running) increase their life expectancy and have less functional decline compared with those who are sedentary. Weight training can help increase bone mass and reduce risk of falls and fractures. A healthy diet may prevent or reduce risk of many diseases that contribute to frailty, including breast and colon cancers, osteoporosis, obesity, and undernutrition; morbidity and mortality may also be reduced.

This topic was last updated July 2005.