REVIEW article
Front. Pharmacol.
Sec. Ethnopharmacology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1541373
This article is part of the Research TopicReviews in Ethnopharmacology: 2025View all 22 articles
Exploring the Role of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Sarcopenia: Mechanisms and Therapeutic Advances
Provisionally accepted
- 1Zhejiang Medical & Health Group Quzhou Hospital, Quzhou, China
- 2Wenzhou Geriatric Hospital, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
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Sarcopenia is characterized by the progressive loss of muscle mass, strength, and function, predominantly affecting the elderly population, and has emerged as a significant public health concern in the context of global aging. Its pathogenesis is multifactorial, involving aging-related processes, imbalances in skeletal muscle homeostasis, mitochondrial dysfunction, immune-mediated inflammation, and gut microbiota dysbiosis. Recent studies suggest that traditional therapies, including traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)-such as herbal medicine, acupuncture, and qigongwhen integrated with modern medical treatments, may offer a more personalized therapeutic approach for older adults with sarcopenia. This integrative strategy has demonstrated considerable potential to improve muscle mass, enhance strength, decelerate the aging process, and ultimately improve patients' quality of life. This review aims to summarize the clinical research and applications of TCM in sarcopenia management, explore the potential mechanisms underlying TCM's therapeutic effects, and discuss future research directions and their clinical relevance.
Keywords: Sarcopenia, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Muscular Atrophy, Natural drug, complementary and alternative therapies
Received: 07 Dec 2024; Accepted: 26 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Yao and Xia. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Jianjun Yao, Zhejiang Medical & Health Group Quzhou Hospital, Quzhou, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.