Translating Nutritional Care in Sarcopenia: Practical Implementation Across Clinical Pathways and Lifestyle Interventions

Sarcopenia is a major contributor to functional decline, frailty and loss of independence in ageing populations. While diagnostic frameworks such as EWGSOP2 have improved identification, early recognition in routine clinical practice remains inconsistent, particularly where screening for malnutrition and muscle loss is not systematically embedded within care pathways. The translation of nutritional recommendations into routine care therefore remains variable and uneven across settings. Evidence supports the role of protein intake, amino acid supplementation, vitamin D and oral nutritional supplements; however, this evidence is largely derived from controlled settings and does not consistently translate into standardised clinical practice. As a result, there is limited clarity not only on what to deliver, but on how nutritional care can be embedded within existing clinical pathways. Clinical practice is further constrained by multimorbidity, heterogeneity in patient needs and system-level pressures, including workforce capacity, service structure and patient adherence. These challenges are often compounded by undernutrition, delayed intervention and progressive deconditioning, which together reduce the effectiveness of later-stage care. These factors suggest that the challenge is not solely a lack of guidance, but a gap in adoption, integration and delivery within real-world contexts. There is therefore a need to move beyond isolated intervention studies towards research that explicitly addresses feasibility, scalability and implementation of nutritional care, including its alignment with multidisciplinary, multimodal management approaches encompassing exercise, nutrition, behavioural and psychological support, and coordinated care across clinical teams.

This Research Topic aims to address the persistent gap between evidence-based nutritional recommendations and their consistent application in sarcopenia care. While a strong evidence base exists for nutritional interventions, their integration into routine clinical pathways remains limited and variable. The goal is to advance understanding of how nutritional care can be effectively delivered, adapted and sustained across real-world settings, rather than to re-establish efficacy. The collection will prioritise research that examines implementation, feasibility and clinical integration of nutritional strategies, including how these interact with multimodal care approaches such as resistance exercise and behavioural support. By focusing on delivery, scalability and patient-centred application, this Research Topic seeks to identify what works in practice, for whom, and under what conditions. The intention is to generate clinically actionable insights that support healthcare professionals and service providers in embedding nutritional care within standard sarcopenia management pathways.

This Research Topic welcomes original research, reviews and clinical perspectives that address the delivery, integration and real-world application of nutritional care in sarcopenia across clinical and community settings. The scope prioritises studies that extend beyond efficacy alone to examine how nutritional strategies are implemented, adapted and sustained in practice, including hospital, rehabilitation, outpatient and community care pathways. Submissions may include, but are not limited to:

• Protein and energy prescription in clinical populations.
• Essential amino acid and targeted supplementation strategies.
• Oral nutritional supplements within care pathways.
• Screening and early identification of sarcopenia and malnutrition.
• Nutritional assessment and GLIM-aligned approaches.
• Integration of nutrition with resistance exercise and rehabilitation programmes.

We particularly encourage intervention studies that incorporate feasibility, acceptability, adherence, or implementation components alongside clinical outcomes.We also welcome work exploring patient adherence, behavioural influences and service-level factors such as workforce capacity, pathway design and accessibility. Studies addressing undernutrition, deconditioning and delayed or suboptimal care pathways are particularly encouraged, especially where linked to functional outcomes (e.g. strength, mobility, quality of life) in real-world or pragmatic contexts. We invite a range of article types, including original research, systematic and narrative reviews, clinical trials with translational relevance, feasibility and pilot studies, implementation research and practice-based perspectives. Submissions should clearly articulate implications for clinical practice and service delivery, with emphasis on feasibility, scalability and integration into standard sarcopenia care.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Conceptual Analysis
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Conceptual Analysis
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Sarcopenia, Clinical Nutrition, Protein Intake, Oral Nutritional Supplements, Implementation, Frailty, Muscle Health, Ageing, Behavioural Science, Lifestyle Interventions

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.