In seniors who have already fallen, strengthening the muscles and working on balance reduces the risk of falls.
According to Journal of the American Medical Associationmuscle strengthening and balance work reduce falls in frail elderly people by 36%. The clinical trialwhich lasted one year, also showed a slight improvement in cognitive functions after the fitness program.
Reduced mobility
“When we think of falls, we associate them with loss of muscle strength and poor balance,” says Dr. Teresa Liu-Ambrose, lead author of the study. “However, the ability to stand also depends on cognitive abilities, to calculate how far to lift the foot to cross a sidewalk”, for example, she continues.
The study involved 344 adults aged 70 and over who had already suffered serious falls, and suffered from reduced mobility as a result. All followed a fitness program at home, at the rate of at least three sessions per week.
“The particularity of this study group is that these members were at high risk of losing their independence,” notes Liu-Ambrose, holder of a research chair in physical activity, mobility and neuroscience. “Older people who fall are complex to care for and have a high risk of mortality. We have demonstrated that exercise is a practical and cost-effective intervention that can improve the posture of older people after a major fall,” she concludes.
Leading cause of death in people over 65
In France, falls are the leading cause of death among people over 65. Nearly 400,000 elderly people fall every year, and 12,000 die. One in twelve falls causes a fracture, which affects the neck of the femur one in three times.
Last year, a study on the issue also demonstrated the benefits of tai chi. “In community-dwelling older adults at high risk of falls, a therapeutically appropriate tai ji quan balance training intervention has been shown to be more effective than conventional exercise methods in reducing the incidence falls,” the authors concluded.
