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Muscle-strengthening activities are associated with lower risk and mortality in major non-communicable diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies
Systematic review and meta-analysis of 16 prospective cohort studies (adults ≥18) reporting muscle-strengthening activities are associated with roughly 10–17% lower pooled risks of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, total cancer, diabetes, and lung cancer in the abstract summary, with J-shaped dose–response near ~30–60 min/week for several outcomes—cohort association evidence independent of aerobic activity in the authors’ framing.
Design
- Type: systematic review + meta-analysis of prospective cohorts (PROSPERO CRD42020219808)
- Corpus: 16 eligible studies from MEDLINE + Embase (inception → June 2021)
- Exposure: self-reported or questionnaire-derived muscle-strengthening activities (weights, resistance bands, calisthenics-style strength work)—definitions vary by cohort
- Independence claim: analyses aim to address associations independent of aerobic activity (read supplemental tables for joint models)
Abstract-reported pooled associations (any / higher vs lower muscle-strengthening)
- All-cause mortality, CVD, total cancer, diabetes, lung cancer: authors summarise ~10–17% lower pooled risk directions for people engaging in muscle-strengthening versus lower levels / none in the main two-group narrative
- Site-specific cancers: no association reported for colon, kidney, bladder, pancreatic cancers in the abstract summary
Dose–response (non-linear models in paper)
- J-shaped curves described for all-cause mortality, CVD, and total cancer, with maximum pooled risk reductions ~10–20% near ~30–60 min/week of muscle-strengthening activities
- Diabetes: L-shaped narrative—large risk reduction concentrated up to ~60 min/week then flatter in abstract framing
- Joint activity: combined muscle-strengthening + aerobic (vs neither) associated with lower all-cause, CVD, and total cancer mortality in joint meta-analysis figures—verify category cut-points in online supplements
Evidence hygiene
- Cohort / observational tier: residual confounding (baseline health, occupation, socioeconomic patterning, undiagnosed illness) can inflate or deflate HR/RR estimates—do not treat pooled percentages as guaranteed individual treatment effects
- Pairing on this wiki: use next to Schoenfeld 2017 / Morton 2018 (hypertrophy / protein RCT anchors) and Krogh 2017 (depression exercise trials)—different question than acute caffeine (Grgic 2020) or creatine + RT body composition (Desai 2024 on
creatine-monohydrate-supplementation)
Conclusion (authors)
Muscle-strengthening activities were inversely associated with all-cause mortality and several major NCDs; high volumes showed unclear extra benefit given J-shapes—interpret dose targets cautiously.
Outcomes
- All-Cause Mortality RateSixteen cohort meta-analysis (abstract): muscle-strengthening activities vs lower/none associated with ~10–17% lower pooled risk of all-cause mortality, CVD, total cancer, diabetes, and lung cancer—verify per-outcome RR/HR tables in full text.
- All-Cause Mortality RiskNon-linear dose–response (abstract): J-shaped for all-cause mortality, CVD, and total cancer with largest pooled reductions near ~30–60 min/week; diabetes described as L-shaped with large reductions up to ~60 min/week.
- Effect Size (Cohen's d / SMD)Joint muscle-strengthening + aerobic activity meta-analysis (vs neither) linked to lower all-cause, CVD, and total cancer mortality in paper figures—activity category definitions vary by included cohort.