Falls
Falling is not a natural part of the aging process…..
Falling is not a natural part of the aging process. I saw a gentleman this week who has had two recent falls, luckily with no serious injury except to his pride. He said to me 'well I'm 83 now its not really a surprise'. This man had been playing golf daily, meeting friends and socialising until the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic. The loss of routine, lack of exercise or stimulation and general isolation from the outside world has taken its toll. This story will be familiar to many families around the country and world wide I'm sure. Falling is not a natural part of the aging process and there are some simple steps you can take to minimise the risk of falls.
1. Staying active, some gentle exercise and strengthening work can and will help. Even if you are housebound.
2. Eat well, a healthy diet will help you build and maintain muscle
3. Eyesight, poor eyesight will make you more likely to fall if you struggle to see what's in front of you. See the optician and get your glasses prescription updated if need be.
4. Footwear, ill fitting or backless slippers can make you more likely to lose your balance or trip. Hard skin, long toe nails or poor foot health can also have a significant impact on your falls risk.
5. Medication, some tablets can make you dizzy. Being on a number of different tablets can also increase your risk of falls. Speak to your GP to see if you really need to still be taking all the medication you've been prescribed in the past.
6. Look after your bone health, calcium and vitamin D play and important part in this. In Scotland we definitely don't get enough natural Vitamin D so consider a supplement to keep your levels up. If your bones are strong you are less likely to fracture them if you are unlucky enough to have a fall. Vitamin D may also play an important role in prevention of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) so its a good one to invest in! But I'm straying off topic that's for another post.
I plan on making a video of a selection of strength and balance exercises that would be suitable for the frailer group of fallers or people that are house bound. That's this weekends task. Watch this space. Thanks for reading and please pass this info on to anyone you think might be falling or at risk of falling.