Links With Falls, Brain Injury And Senior Balance Exercises

Senior Balance Exercises Limit Falls

By Suzanne Stoke, Physical Therapist @ Exercise For Balance via www.exerciseforbalance.com

      Medical professionals often warn older adults about the dangers of falling and the benefits of performing senior balance exercises on a regular basis. Please see    http://www.exerciseforbalance.com/buy-now Falling  has long been recognized as a high risk for serious bodily injury to aging bodies. Researchers have now found that one of the consequences of falling – traumatic brain injury (TIB) – is associated with an increased risk of dementia in adults 55 years and older, according to their report published online by JAMA Neurology. Medical researchers have shown that a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury is associated with an increase in dementia risk for adults 55 years of age and older, they report. On the other hand, for senior citizens – age 65 and older – it only takes a mild traumatic brain injury to make dementia look more likely. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that Americans 55 years and older account for more than 60 percent of all hospitalizations for traumatic brain injury. The highest rates of traumatic brain injury-related emergency department (ED) visits, inpatient stays and deaths, however, are happening among those patients 75 years and older. Researchers Raquel C. Gardner, M.D., of the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues examined the risk of dementia among adults 55 years and older with recent traumatic brain injury compared with adults with non-traumatic brain injury  body trauma (NTT), which was defined as fractures but not of the head or neck. In the study, a total of 51,799 patients with trauma (31.5 percent) had traumatic brain injury. Of those, 4,361 patients (8.4 percent) developed dementia compared with 6,610 patients (5.9 percent) with NTT (other body trauma). The average time from trauma to dementia diagnosis was 3.2 years and it was shorter in the traumatic brain injury group compared with the NTT group (3.1 vs. 3.3 years). Moderate to severe traumatic brain injury was associated with increased risk of dementia at 55 years or older, while mild traumatic brain injury at 65 years or older increased the dementia risk. The good news about this study is that researchers have also found that consistently performing senior balance exercises will enhance stability and reduce the frequency of falling, which leads to traumatic brain injury.

Senior Balance Exercises Reduce Falls

   The best way to prevent falls and injuries like brain injuries that are a result of falling is to rehearse senior balance exercises every day. Simple equilibrium routines can be as basic as standing on one foot for twenty to thirty seconds. To perform this exercise safely, you should stand near a table, counter or other stable object that you can hold on to if you need to as you first start to practice this steadiness routine. Additionally, consistency with stability routines is critical to develop strong balance reactions as well as strong connections between the sensory input in your feet and ankles and the balance center in your brain. That is why it is recommended to begin the senior balance exercise program detailed in the exercise for balance DVD.

Senior Balance Exercises In The Exercise For Balance DVD

    To avoid falls and injuries, please begin the best balance exercises with the Exercise For Balance DVD. The easy to follow Exercise For Balance DVD is a wonderful instructional DVD to use at home or in a group setting. The Exercise For Balance DVD comes filled  with the best balance and strength exercises needed to enhance senior fitness and to perform basic activities like walking, grocery shopping, standing, stair climbing or to advance to high level activities like navigating narrow aisles,  dancing and hiking. In the professionally filmed  Exercise For Balance DVD, you will learn how to improve balance, stability strategies and balance routines from a balance and mobility instructor--- licensed Physical Therapist--- who has worked with balance and dizziness disorders for over 20 years. Get your copy of the Exercise For Balance DVD by clicking on the BUY NOW button

   Don't fall--- instead start balance exercises today with the Exercise For Balance DVD to improve balance and prevent falls.
For more information see http://www.mayoclinic.com/health-information/