Serum albumin, a protein measured by a common lab test, has a large inverse relation with mortality.

Why?

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In very old people, albumin was a more important risk marker than traditional risk factors such as HDL, LDL, and HbA1c.
https://t.co/1wolLynI1O
"serum albumin concentration is inversely related to mortality risk in a graded manner over its entire range"

in both healthy people and those with acute or chronic illness.
https://t.co/OMQHNwX8Pd
But, low albumin is NOT a consequence of normal aging.

So, what's going on?

https://t.co/p3RR7SyjUQ
While there are suggestions that low albumin is a sign of undetected illness...

albumin is also associated with loss of muscle mass.

https://t.co/1rW4BluMAs
"the increased risk of disability with low serum albumin concentrations observed in the elderly may actually reflect an association with sarcopenia."

Sarcopenia = pathological muscle loss
https://t.co/FdNA1s4s8V
Old age is not a cause of low albumin, but is associated with muscle loss

and indicates malnutrition.
Low dietary protein leads to lower albumin synthesis.

https://t.co/ZiIjBA69us
Albumin Synthesis Is Diminished in Men Consuming a Predominantly Vegetarian Diet

Since albumin is itself a protein, this points to lower protein intake

https://t.co/qZ9xXlOwML
Conclusion: low albumin is a strong risk factor for mortality.

It's associated with low muscle mass and low protein intake.

Increased dietary protein and resistance training may be the best ways to counteract low albumin.

More from Society

This is a piece I've been thinking about for a long time. One of the most dominant policy ideas in Washington is that policy should, always and everywhere, move parents into paid labor. But what if that's wrong?

My reporting here convinced me that there's no large effect in either direction on labor force participation from child allowances. Canada has a bigger one than either Romney or Biden are considering, and more labor force participation among women.

But what if that wasn't true?

Forcing parents into low-wage, often exploitative, jobs by threatening them and their children with poverty may be counted as a success by some policymakers, but it’s a sign of a society that doesn’t value the most essential forms of labor.

The problem is in the very language we use. If I left my job as a New York Times columnist to care for my 2-year-old son, I’d be described as leaving the labor force. But as much as I adore him, there is no doubt I’d be working harder. I wouldn't have stopped working!

I tried to render conservative objections here fairly. I appreciate that @swinshi talked with me, and I'm sorry I couldn't include everything he said. I'll say I believe I used his strongest arguments, not more speculative ones, in the piece.

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