Each year, one in four seniors experience a fall, stemming from a combination of factors, including diminished balance, muscle weakness, and chronic health conditions like arthritis. Some falls also result from hazards like loose rugs or poor lighting.The falls aren’t just minor occurrences. Instead, they cause serious injuries that can lead to complications like chronic pain and loss of independence. Fortunately, you can prevent falls with the following tips from Sworkit, a leading exercise app.
1. Stay Active
Seniors with a sedentary lifestyle fall more than those who are active. The reason is that inactivity impairs strength and balance, which are critical for maintaining stability. As such, embracing an active lifestyle could lower the chances of a fall.
Regular activity boosts muscle strength, balance, and coordination. While there are many ways to stay active, focus on strength and balance exercises to do at home like the sit-to-stand. You can get these guided exercises on fitness apps like Sworkit.
2. Fall-Proof Your Home
As you advance in age, your vision, balance, and strength decline. As a result, navigating various parts of your home, like the staircases, entryways, laundry rooms, bathrooms, and hallways, becomes a complex task.
For this reason, as you grow older, there is a need to fall-proof your home to make it safer. Slip prevention entails removing tripping hazards like loose rugs and clutter. Moreover, you can go the extra mile and install grab bars in bathrooms and stairs to minimize falls.
3. Lighting Up Your Living Space
Dim lighting makes it difficult to identify potential hazards like cords and rugs. Moreover, poor illumination impairs your depth perception, making it harder to navigate through your living space. With such lighting, your risk of tripping and stumbling increases.
That said, when working to reduce the risk of falls, swap those dim lights with brighter ones. Remember that extremely bright light can cause glare, which is just as hazardous as dim light. Thus, make sure your new lights are not overwhelming.
4. Enhance the Safety of Outdoor Spaces
Your interior is not the only hazardous space in your home. The outdoors has its fair share of issues. For instance, broken or uneven steps at your front door increase the risk of missteps, which can lead to tripping.
As such, you should inspect the steps leading to your front door and make sure they aren’t uneven or broken. Furthermore, place a non-slip mat on outdoor stairways to enhance traction, especially during wet conditions.
Apart from the steps, clear debris on your lawn, deck, or porch. Loose debris obstructs pathways, increasing the risk of falls. During winter months, apply ice melt on the walkways to make the surfaces are less slippery.
5. Wear Sensible Shoes
Inappropriate footwear, such as floppy slippers or shoes with high heels, increases the risk of stumbling, slipping, and falling. These types of footwear lack proper support and traction, which is why they aren’t great for seniors.
Therefore, opt for footwear with sturdy soles and a good grip. The right pair should provide ample support around the ankles, have low heels, and a non-slip flat sole.
6. Secure Loose Rugs
A loose rug is one hazard many seniors neglect when fall-proofing their homes. They forget that the loose rugs can shift underfoot, making one lose balance. For this reason, when fall-proofing, you should secure rugs firmly to the floor using non-slip rug pads or double-sided tape to enhance your safety.
Prevent Falls With the Sworkit Fitness App
Keeping fit is one of the best ways to prevent falls. However, finding the motivation to get in shape, and choosing the right workouts can be a challenge. This is where Sworkit, our groundbreaking exercise app, comes into play.
We designed the fitness app to make exercise accessible for users of all fitness levels. The app has a library of guided workouts for at-home exercise, including strength training, cardio, and stretching. These exercises enhance your strength, balance, and stability.
Check out Sworkit’s instructional guided fitness plans and more!
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