by Body Manoeuvres | Nov 14, 2022 | Uncategorised
With an aging global population we are hearing more frequently about older people being more sedentary, and as a result more likely to fall.
Falls are common and costly, especially amongst people 65 and older – but they are preventable and do not have to be an inevitable part of aging.
The statistics
There are several causes that might contribute to someone falling – muscle weakness, poor balance, poor sight, certain medication or a mix of medications, hazards around home, or outside, and some specific medical conditions. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/falls-applying-all-our-health/falls-applying-all-our-health)
Low bone density (osteoporosis) contributes to fractures when people fall, and in the UK over 3million people suffer with this condition.
The costs, monetarily to the health sector, and personally to individuals is very high. In 2017/18 the Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) reported that there were over 200k emergency hospital admissions related to falls among patients aged 65 and over 150k of the patients were over 80. In England, in 2013, falls were the ninth highest cause of “disability-adjusted life years”. It has been estimated that the total annual cost of fragility fractures to the UK has been estimated at £4.4billion.
What are the practical solutions to improve this?
Here are four things that people can do to prevent falls:
- Discuss any worries with the doctor and healthcare provider – ask them to review any medication as the way medicines work within our bodies can change as we age.
- Exercise, stay active and include single leg balances – with a bent leg. If you balance with a straight leg the skeleton supports the body, not the postural muscles. So if you brush your teeth standing on one leg, make sure the leg is bent.
- Have your eyes and feet checked regularly. Poor vision can increase chances of falling; poor footcare, sore feet, can impact how we walk (our gait) and make us more unbalanced.
- Review the safety in your home – make sure there is nothing that can be easily tripped over, get grab bars installed where they might help, and look at the lighting – can you clearly see where you are going?
In conclusion
Whatever activity you decide to do, start now – starting earlier helps. Just 10-15 minutes of practice per day can enable a significant improvement in someone’s confidence and enable them to remain active and independent – something we all want – I know I do.
by Body Manoeuvres | Nov 7, 2022 | Uncategorised
At school we might have played hopscotch and games where we counted how often we could hop on one leg – when we were young if anyone asked us about our balance we would have thought they were mad.
Throughout our lives we’ve probably never given it a great deal of thought – that is until we start to lose our ability to balance.
Have you noticed if you stand on one leg to put your trousers or leggings on, or do you now sit down? What about putting your shoes on – how does that go?
Balance is not something that we are born with – it’s an ability that we learn over time – think about babies becoming toddlers and learning to walk and run without falling. And if we don’t use it, we lose it.
If we lose our ability to balance drugs or surgery won’t solve the problem for us – we may need to relearn the ability so that we have the confidence to move as we grow older.
Research
Globally a lack of balance is being associated with serious health problems. Earlier in 2022, the British Journal of Sports Medicine shared the results of a decade-long study. It involved more than 1700 middle aged participants and concluded that those people who found that they could not balance were at a higher risk of dying early.
And people are unsure as to what causes us to lose our balance – it may be that we are becoming more sedentary in our lifestyles – unfortunately this is now starting at a younger age.
In 2021 the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed figures that by 2030 16.4% (or 1.4 billion people) will be aged over 60 and that the populations of “more developed” countries will have aged most rapidly.
Research into how people can be helped has started in many areas around the world. In Australia there is a Falls Lab which aims to train people not to fall over by making them trip in a safety harness. Their approach is to enable brains to re-wire making people quicker and more responsive if they do trip or slip.
So what can you do?
This is an area where prevention is better than cure, and the more you do, the more you practice balancing and generally moving around the better the results – it does have a cumulative effect.
So however you decide to move more the key takeaway is to start before you need to – just 15 minutes a day practicing balance exercises is a great place to start and will improve your balance ability.
If you are interested in finding out more and are unsure where to start contact:
E: jane@bodymanoeuvres.com
by Body Manoeuvres | Oct 20, 2022 | Uncategorised
If we look for the definition of “age” in a dictionary it is likely to say, “the length of time that a person has lived, or a thing has existed”.
If we then look up the word “aging”, it links it to growing old or older.
I wish it was as simple as this. Often when we think of aging we construct an image of our body breaking down and an expectation to feel aches and pains at some stage – we tell ourselves, and we are told, that it’s inevitable.
I believe that many aspects of aging can be avoided. Yes, there are certainly times when the intervention of a doctor or medical help is definitely required – medical technology has enabled us to have hip and knee replacements when they are really needed (Trends and developments in hip and knee arthroplasty technology), and vaccinations (especially recently) have been a lifesaver for us.
We now live much longer than it was 100 years ago; but what has happened is the quality of our active lives has deteriorated through our sedentary lifestyles, myriad pieces of technology that do work for us and food that is deficient in the vitamins and minerals that our bodies need.
Pharmaceutical companies make amazing drugs that help us to manage pain conditions, but often they mask what is really going in in our bodies and do nothing to cure the underlying problem.
Many of the aches and pains we feel in our bodies as we get older is due to the way we have physically used our bodies in earlier years – how we sit, stand and move can make our muscles chronically tight and sore, which puts stress into our joints, nerves and bones.
As humans we have the unique ability to learn new motor skills throughout our lives, whether that’s on the athletic field (breaking world records) or sitting at a desk eight hours a day, staring at a screen and using a computer. This latter example, if we do this day after day, and year after year is very likely to leave us with some pain in our bodies; for some individuals this pain may become chronic and it will be with them for many years.
However the same way we learnt habits that have brought our bodies to a painful condition, can be unlearnt and new, more beneficial movement habits can take their place. We can find ease of movement again and rediscover those activities that we used to do and find enjoyment in them again.
Taking responsibility for how we use our bodies daily means that it is possible to avoid aches and pains.
It does not have to be inevitable that aging brings limited movement and chronic pain.
by Body Manoeuvres | Mar 22, 2021 | Uncategorised
With the recent shift to working from home, there has been a tremendous amount of information about how we should take care of ourselves, in particular to sit less, and move more.
Most people understand this – it does not take much to persuade people of the importance of movement.
However, the harder part is implementing the change. When it comes to creating new habits there is always an uncomfortable stage – unfortunately we often believe this stage will last forever; we believe that we’ve picked the wrong thing to start or improve – but this can happen with any change – the key is that is passes.
The other part of creating the change is knowing, or working out, where to start.
One of things that helps at this stage is to find the purpose behind the new habit – where do we want the habit to take us, what do we want to be doing differently, how do we want to be seen differently?
When we really believe in something and its purpose, we find an energy for it. Therefore, when it comes to moving more, the important question is: what do you want out of moving more/your exercise session/run/Pilates class?
Do you want to feel less stressed? Do you want to look toned and healthy? Do you want to be able to play with your children or grandchildren?
Thinking about our purpose in movement and what we will gain from it is a great motivator. When we keep moving, we are doing what we were born to do – we will perform better both physically and mentally.
by Body Manoeuvres | Mar 11, 2021 | Uncategorised
Whenever we go on a plane to go on holiday, we always hear something like: “Should the cabin lose pressure, oxygen masks will drop from the overhead area. Please place the mask over your own mouth and nose before assisting others.”
Why are we told this? On a plane it’s an important rule for ensuring survival – because if you run out of oxygen yourself, then you won’t be able to help anyone else with theirs.
In our day to day working lives, in order to be able to look after others, (family, friends or work colleagues), we need to look after ourselves first. Creating time to look after ourselves – our physical and mental health – is key to our happiness and wellbeing, and of benefit to others.
We are hearing a great deal about our need to move more – whether that be in a structured form of exercise or just getting up regularly from sitting at a desk, and how movement benefits the physiological functions in our body – it is prolonged inactivity that increases the health risks of heart disease, cancer, Type 2 diabetes and bone/joint health.
What exercise and movement also does is to impact positively on our cognitive abilities and mental health. At a time when we need to “feel and be on top of things” exercise and movement can lift our mood – we have our own opiates in the form of endorphins – that help us to feel better.
If you have a responsibility to look after others, in whatever capacity that might be, let go of the guilt and find time to move or exercise regularly; even exercise-snacks during the day will help. There are also numerous studies that show how regular activity improves the time and quality of our sleep.
So, the next time you put off moving to get just one more email sent – don’t – get up and move and know that by putting your oxygen mask on first, you will better be able to help others.
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