Each year, one in three adults age 65 and older falls.
Falls can lead to moderate to severe injuries, such as hip fractures and head traumas, and can even increase the risk of early death. According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), older adults can remain independent and reduce their risk of falling by taking these precautions:
Fall Prevention Tips
Exercise regularly. It is important that the exercises focus on increasing leg strength and improving balance, and that they get more challenging over time.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist to review your medications to identify medicines that may cause side effects or interactions such as dizziness or drowsiness.
Get your eyes checked at least once a year and update eyeglasses to maximize your vision. Consider getting a pair with single vision distance lenses for some activities such as walking outside.
Home Safety – reduce tripping hazards, add grab bars inside and outside the bath tub and next to the toilet, add stair railings and improve lighting to reduce glare and shadows.
Improve Your Balance with Physical Therapy
Maintaining proper balance and sense of body position is critical to preventing falls. A physical therapist can help you prevent falls by designing an individualized program of exercises and activities with an emphasis on strength, flexibility, and proper gait. Balance may be improved with exercises that strengthen the core, back, ankle, knee, and hip muscles along with exercises that improve the function of the balance system. If you have concerns about your balance, call your doctor. Ask your doctor if physical therapy can help.
References: Good Health Today