Exercise effective at preventing injurious falls in older people

Falls have a huge impact on the wellness of older individuals.  A new meta-analysis published in JAMA (the journal of the American Medical Association) found that exercise alone, such as Tai Chi can decrease the risk of injurious falls by up to 12% in individuals aged 65 and over.  An even greater reduction, up to 38% was seen in those who exercised and had vision assessment and-or treatment for vision.  The findings were based on an analysis of 54 randomised clinical trials involving 42,000 people.

Recent studies published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that exercise led to improvements in functional reach and balance and also reduced the “fear of falling” in older individuals.

NOTE:  This study received funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.