Balance and Falls Prevention

What is falls prevention?

Falls prevention is the development of different strategies that can be implemented to prevent falling. Strategies such as balance training exercises that have been prescribed to you can help prevent the likelihood of falling.

Studies and randomised trials have found that rate of falling has reduced significantly by implementing the following:

Exercising, especially programs that include specific balance training exercises
Improving vision e.g. removing cataracts
Decreasing intake of medications that can affect the brain and/or vestibular system
Modifying the home eg. adding safety rails and ramps
Podiatric treatment e.g. foot and ankle exercises for people with foot pain and high fall risk.

What causes falls as we get older?

As ageing occurs, falls become more common with at least one-third of Australians aged 65 years and older falling every year. Falling when we are older can result in more serious injury and permanent damage such as disability, restriction of activity, increased likelihood of fractures, loss of confidence and fear of falling. All of these factors can have a significant impact on an older person’s quality of life and independence.

Risk factors for falling can include:

Older age
History of falls
Poor balance
Slow reaction time
Muscle weakness
Poor eyesight
Reduced sensation in lower limbs (eg. from neuromuscular conditions or diabetes)
Decreased mobility
Medical conditions inducing tremor e.g. Parkinson’s disease
Medications that can affect the vestibular system e.g. centrally acting medications.

Almost three quarters of falls are reported to be caused by slips, trips and loss of balance. These are things that are all balance related and can somewhat be prevented with the implementation of appropriate strategies.

When conditioned people slip or trip, there is less of a chance of falling because the muscles around the calves and lower limbs are able to react faster and with more strength to prevent a fall and if falling does occur, the bones are less susceptible to fracture.

How can Bites Exercise physiologists help?

Evidence has shown that exercise can prevent falls in older people by eliminating a number of key risk factors. Exercise can improve balance, walking speed, muscular strength (particularly in postural muscles and the lower limbs) and psychological factors such as mental ability and mood.

At Bites we help to keep you strong and independent for as long as we can, so we provide balance training and cognitive exercises to help train the body systems and strengthen the muscles we use for balance.

These exercises help by training you to respond better to an unforeseen balance challenge such as a missed step, an obstacle on a pathway or a slippery surface. We will train and condition your body to respond more appropriately to the challenge rather than fall! We will also work towards increasing bone density and muscle strength so that if you do fall, the result won’t be as significant with less chance of a hip fracture or similar significant consequence.

Fall prevention strategies and balance exercises must be prescribed to you by a health professional with an Exercise Physiologist being the most appropriate choice to prescribe exercise therapy. Our Bites Exercise Physiologists will assess your falls risk before prescribing you any exercises. We will take into account your medical history and current abilities to figure out the best exercise program to prescribe to help you improve your balance, make sure your exercises are safe and ultimately decrease your risk of falling so you can stay independent for as long as possible!

Our dietitians will attempt to correct any form of undernutrition or deficiencies with personalised meal plans and recommendations for you. They will work closely with you to help identify the best strategy moving forward to best tackle this disease.

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An interesting fact about exercise and falls prevention

In older people, falling results in them being 3 times more likely to be admitted to a nursing home. This statistic increases to being 10 times more likely to be admitted after a fall that caused an injury!

What improvements can you expect from a tailored exercise prescription?

Improvements from a tailored exercise prescription will vary, however some improvement include:

Improved balance
Increased muscle strength
Improved reaction time
Increased mobility
Decreased risk of falling
Increased walking speed
Increased bone density

How will you know it’s working/you’re improving ?

Following a tailored exercise prescription will increase your confidence and independence when performing daily tasks. Your balance will improve and tasks that you may have found difficult before will become easier!

You’ll feel less worried about navigating the community and rely less on your balance aids such as walkers and sticks.

Helpful things to bring/remember before your first appointment

Referral (not necessary) from your GP or specialist
List of medications and dosages.
Previous notes from other health care professionals.

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Contact Details

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305/29–31 Lexington Drive, Bella Vista NSW 2153

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0452 458 146

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