Getting older can be tough for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which is the increased risk of falling and hurting yourself. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , more than 14 million older adults fall every year, and falls are the top cause of fatal and nonfatal injuries in this age group. It’s hard to know if you’re at risk of suffering from a fall.
However, a recent study led by researchers at the Mayo Clinic found that one fitness test can help determine your fall risk: the ability to stand on one leg. The study, which was published in the Public Library of Science One journal , looked at 40 healthy people over the age of 50 with no neuromuscular disorders. Half of the participants were under 65, while the others were 65-plus.
Researchers measured knee strength, grip strength, gait while walking on a flat path, and 30 seconds of balancing on one leg. Of all measures, balancing decreased most with age; the ability to stand on one’s nondominant leg declined 2.2 seconds per decade, while the ability to stand on one’s dominant leg declined at 1.
7 seconds per decade. Researchers looked at various balance studies and discovered that testing the balance on the nondominant leg was the best way to measure age-related neuromuscular decline, according to Dr. Jeevan Abraham , a sports medicine physician at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago who was not affiliated with the study.
This is important because the better the balance, the lower the risk.
