Manahawkin Chiropractic Tip: Practice Balance Every Day !
“I’m just not as balanced as I once was.”
This isn’t an unusual conversation starter at Manahawkin Chiropractic Center from our Manahawkin chiropractic patients and/or their loved ones. Balance is vital to avert falls and related issues that may come with it…like breaking something! Manahawkin Chiropractic Center offers some news about fall prevention and balance improvement with spinal manipulation and balance practice.
BALANCE AND AGING
The 50s bring some hard to ignore changes especially in terms of balance. Such changes in balance also increase the risk for falling and other health concerns. A report of 1702 people between 51 and 75 years old who had no issues with walking found that 20.4% couldn’t perform a 10 second one-legged-stand which tended to increase the risk of all-cause mortality. (1) Failing the 10 second balance test was related to an 84% higher risk of dying within in the study time (12 years). This observational study didn’t declare cause/effect but suggested a connection, a link that may encourage middle and older age folks to practice standing on one leg every day! To be safe, Manahawkin Chiropractic Center recommends standing near to a counter to stabilize yourself if necessary. If you can only do 2 seconds today, keep working on it. you will do better over time! (2) Once you add a few seconds, you’ll want to do more! Proprioception exercises may help, too!
MORE ENCOURAGEMENT TO PRACTICE BALANCE
A research project compared how known “fallers,” “nonfallers,” and young volunteers performed on a force plate gauging test for postural sway. None differed in transfer of weight. Younger ones reduced postural sway within 2 seconds while older ones never did and swayed the same the whole time. Older “fallers” swayed significantly more. This specially made one-leg-stance test determined the “fallers” better – 100% - than other commonly used ways to measure balance – five-times-sit-to-stand (69%), timed-up-and-go (48%), usual one-leg-stance without special parameters as in this research study (62%). (3) Tests like these are quite helpful to your Manahawkin chiropractor in evaluating baseline balance.
ROLE OF CHIROPRACTIC MANIPULATION IN MOVEMENT CONTROL
A newly published paper noted the usefulness of (Cox®) flexion distraction spinal manipulation for lumbar spinal stenosis patients by improving their balance test scores - Timed Up and Go and Five Times Sit to Stand Test – and decreasing postural sway and entropy (forward/backward movement) as determined on a force plate. (4) That is so good! Between our in-office chiropractic treatments with Cox® Technic during office visits and in exercise sessions of practicing standing on one foot then the other at home, we will realize how well we can enhance your balance!
CONTACT Manahawkin Chiropractic Center
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Nate McKee on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes relieving chiropractic care and re-establishing balance via The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management for patients with spinal stenosis.
Schedule your Manahawkin chiropractic appointment soon. We look forward to hearing how much better balanced you are!
