Slow Gait And Senior Balance Exercises

Senior Balance Exercises For Slow Walkers

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

  Speed of walking is an important factor for stability and the risk for falling. Those older individuals who walk slowly should practice senior balance exercises on a regular basis. Please see   http://www.exerciseforbalance.com/buy-now Furthermore, aging individuals who walk slowly also have a higher risk of cognitive challenges like dementia and Alzheimer's. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that up to 5.3 million Americans - about 1 in 9 people age 65 and over - have Alzheimer's disease, the most common type of dementia. That number is expected to more than double by 2050 due to population aging. According to  Dr. Verghese, who is also the Murray D. Gross Memorial Faculty Scholar in Gerontology at Einstein,  "As a young researcher, I examined hundreds of patients and noticed that if an older person was walking slowly, there was a good chance that his cognitive tests were also abnormal."  Dr. Verghese developed a simple clinical sign—how fast someone walks—to predict who would develop dementia. In a 2002 New England Journal of Medicine study,  Dr. Verghese reported that abnormal gait patterns accurately predict whether people will go on to develop dementia. The clinical  sign, Motoric cognitive risk,  improves on the slow gait concept by evaluating not only patients' gait speed but also whether they have cognitive complaints." The Neurology paper reported on the prevalence of motoric cognitive risk syndrome among 26,802 adults without dementia or disability aged 60 years and older enrolled in 22 studies in 17 countries. A significant number of adults - 9.7 percent - met the criteria for motoric cognitive risk syndrome (i.e., abnormally slow gait and cognitive complaints). While the syndrome was equally common in men and women, highly educated people were less likely to test positive for motoric cognitive risk syndrome compared with less-educated individuals. A slow gait, said Dr. Verghese, is a walking speed slower than about one meter per second, which is about 2.2 miles per hour (m.p.h.). Less than 0.6 meters per second (or 1.3 m.p.h.) is "clearly abnormal." Older adults who walk slowly are also at a greater risk for falling. Consequently, aging individuals with a slow walking pattern should rehearse senior balance exercises to enhance their stability.

Senior Balance Exercises For Safety With Walking

   Performing senior balance exercises can help speed up the pace of walking as well as improve steadiness with walking. To enhance dynamic stability, you can break down the components of gait and rehearse certain aspects of balance within the gait pattern. As an example, you can start by standing on one foot and swing the other foot forwards as if you are taking a step. This combination of static and dynamic equilibrium routines will help you develop excellent balance skills and prepare you for a safe walking program. You can learn these senior balance exercises by following the instruction of an experienced Physical Therapist in the Exercise For Balance DVD.

Senior Balance Exercises In The Exercise For Balance DVD

    To help speed up your walking,  embark on a program of the best balance exercises with the Exercise For Balance DVD. The healthcare professional recommended Exercise For Balance DVD is an outstanding educational DVD to use at home or in a group setting. The easy to follow Exercise For Balance DVD comes complete with  a step by step series of top notch balance and strength exercises needed to maximize senior fitness and to perform basic activities like shopping, doing laundry,  walking, standing, cleaning house, stair climbing or to advance to high level activities like skiing, dancing, bocce ball and hiking. In the  comprehensive Exercise For Balance DVD, you will learn how to improve stability, steadiness techniques and balance routines from a balance instructor --- licensed Physical Therapist---who has worked with balance and dizziness disorders for over 25 years. Get your copy of the Exercise For Balance DVD by clicking on the BUY NOW button

 Be safe with walking by starting 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/