Add grip strength tests to weight and blood pressure vital signs, researchers say

May 12, 2024

By Mallika Marshall, MD

August 2, 2023 / 5:36 PM / CBS Boston

BOSTON - In addition to your weight and blood pressure, there is another vital sign that your doctor should measure at your next physical - your grip strength.

The amount of force you can muster with your hand is a good representation of total body strength, which is a good measure of healthy aging, even in younger individuals. Grip strength in men declines rapidly in middle age. For women, it declines slowly after 50.

Low grip strength has been associated with conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and depression. And researchers at the University of Michigan recently found that low grip strength is associated with faster aging in cells.

Providers can measure grip strength using a simple tool in the office called a dynamometer but what they do with this information is still unclear at this point. In the meantime, do strength training exercises on a regular basis to stay as healthy as possible as you age.

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

First published on August 2, 2023 / 5:36 PM

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