Proactively preventing falls

Stay active and watch your step during the winter months

As we age, we are faced with many challenges as our bodies change and adapt over time. One of those challenges is remaining safe going about our daily lives. Older individuals are most at risk for falls. Fall risk is a multifaceted issue as many systems in our body weaken their effectiveness over time. The impending colder weather increases fall risk.

Normal decline in muscle strength and joint flexibility can change how easily an older person stands up, walks, or gets out of a chair. Living a more sedentary lifestyle can increase this decline; many individuals may decrease their activity level in retirement. Combined with a decrease in muscle strength and flexibility, reaction time becomes reduced; the nerves carrying information from the brain deteriorate over time.

If an older individual encounters a patch of ice or catches their foot on a curb, they might not have the adequate strength or reaction time necessary to catch their fall.

Strength and decreased reaction time are not the only elements in the body that decline with age and affect our risk of falls. The systems that control our balance directly are a combination of input from our vision, joint and muscle receptors, and inner ear vestibular organs. Individual differences will affect how much of these systems decline over time.

Input from our joint receptors and muscles comprise 70 percent of the information for balance. This can be affected by the environment (snow, ice, sand). Individuals with medical conditions such as diabetes have decreased proprioception due to the nerves in the body losing their effectiveness to take in information from muscles and joints. Age-related decline and other medical conditions may negatively affect our proprioception.

Creating a daily routine of stretching, light strengthening (can include bodyweight exercises), and cardiovascular activity such as walking is a good recipe to keep our bodies healthy to fight against the effects of aging. Some might be apprehensive to start an exercise program for fear of getting injured, but a program does not need to be intense to be effective in helping you reach health and wellness goals.

David Arend (PT, DPT) is currently a physical therapist at ORS Robinson Rd in Jackson, MI, and will be the Facility Manager at ORS Ann Arbor, opening in late fall 2020.