Nina Laidlaw Rumler, B.A.You might not have heard of sarcopenia, but it touches everyone – everyone who lives long enough to undergo this normal physiological process. A lessening of muscle mass and function, its cumulative effect is becoming a significant public health concern. Two factors contribute: lessened physical activity and increased longevity, eventually resulting in frailty in the elder years. The word means "poverty of flesh," a pitiful image. Age-related, it is ...