Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

The process of aging is accompanied by a decrease in the vasodilatation capacity of the blood vessels and arteries. This phenomenon is one of the proposed mechanisms for loss of muscle mass, given the decrease in blood flow to the muscles. Both resistance exercise and dairy protein intake are encouraged in the elderly in order to curb the loss of muscle mass. There is some scientific evidence that the protein in milk improves vasodilatation. We therefore tried to determine whether a resistance training, combined with the intake of milk proteins, could improve certain markers of vasodilatation and whether this could have an impact on muscle mass in aging adults. Nineteen men aged 60-75 years with reduced muscle masse participated in a 16-wk resistance exercice study. They were randomized in 3 groups and consumed one of three different post-exercise drink : control (chocolate flavoured rice milk), essential amino acids or a milk-derived protein shake. Variables of interest were plasma nitric oxide concentrations as a vasodilation marker and appendicular muscle mass, which both increased similarly among all groups. In contrast, there was difference between groups. These results suggest an effect of resistance training on endothelium vasodilation and muscle mass, but milk-derived protein supplementation did not potentiate this effect. More studies are needed to confirm the implications of these findings in muscular adaptations in older age.