Source: Xinhua

04-03-2009 10:09

WASHINGTON, April 2 (Xinhua) -- A new study published Thursday in the The Journal of Applied Physiology suggests that astronauts need to modify their workouts to avoid extensive muscle loss during missions onboard the International Space Station (ISS).

Astronauts may need more intense workouts to maintain muscle fitness in space.(File photo)

The latest NASA-sponsored research from Indiana-based Ball State University's Human Performance Laboratory (HPL) suggests that changes are needed to optimize the in flight exercise regimen for astronauts to improve their muscle performance while in space for extended stays.

Average stays on the ISS run about six months, and preservation of crewmember health in zero-gravity environments is paramount for safety and mission success. Since exercise is the primary course of action to protect the cardiovascular system, bone, and skeletal muscles, astronauts need to find the optimal exercises to stay fit.

The findings of the Ball State study were based in part on muscle biopsies taken from the astronauts, the first time this procedure has been allowed on crewmembers who have completed long-flight missions, according to Scott Trappe, HPL director.

Working with NASA, Marquette University's biological sciences department in Wisconsin, Wyle Integrated Science and Engineering Group in Houston, and the Medical College of Wisconsin, Trappe found that even while the crewmembers exercised, they still lost an average of 15 percent muscle mass and 20 to 30 percent loss of muscle performance.

"By clinical standards, this is a massive loss," Trappe said. "This approaches what we see in aging populations in comparisons of a 20-year-old versus an 80-year-old. This poses risks to the crewmembers and could have a dramatic impact on locomotion and overall health, which would impact a variety of crewmembers' activities including future goals of planetary exploration."

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