The influence of resistance training on inflammatory markers, body composition and functional capacity in healthy older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Older adults experience chronic inflammation, which is associated with health conditions such as sarcopenia, and resulting in reduced functional capacity. Resistance training (RT) is a beneficial intervention for improving health in the elderly.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of RT on inflammatory biomarkers, body composition, and functional capacity in healthy adults aged 60 years and over. Additionally, this study conducted a meta-regression to investigate the moderating effect of exercise variables on inflammatory markers.

Method: Medline, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Google Scholar were searched systematically until December 2023. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the impact of RT on C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), body weight, BMI, fat percentage, fat mass, lean mass, leg extension strength and six-minute walk test (6-MWT) were included. Effect size was estimated by using the mean difference (MD) with 95 % confidence interval (CI).

Results: Nineteen RTCs involving 728 participants were included. The results revealed that CRP levels significantly decreased following RT programs (MD:0.74, p= 0.008), while TNF-α (MD: 0.1, p= 0.95) and IL-6 (MD:0.27, p= 0.12) did not show significant changes. Additionally, RT enhanced leg extension strength and 6-MWT performance.

Conclusion: RT effectively reduces CRP concentrations and enhances functional capacity in healthy older adults. However, it does not have a significant impact on TNF-α and IL-6 levels. Future researches are needed to make a clear conclusion and understand the mechanisms underlying the effects of RT in healthy older adults.

Registration: The original protocol was registered (CRD42023487573) in PROSPERO database.