Risk Factors: Falls In Seniors

Every senior has a fear of falling.  We have been told a fall can lead to a serious decline in health, and in many cases, death.  Falls don't just happen, and people don't fall because they get older.  There are often several underlying causes or risk factors involved in a fall.  A risk factor is something that increases a person's risk or susceptibility to a medical problem or disease.

As the number of risk factors rises, so does the risk of falling.  Here are some of the many risk factors that scientists have linked to falling.  You should make your doctor aware of these conditions, if you haven't already done so.  A lot can be done to reduce some of the risks, and thus reduce your probability of falling.

Muscle weakeness, especially in the legs is one of the most important risk factors.  Do whatever you can to maintain muscle strength and flexibility.

Balance and gait-how you walk- is another key factor.  Poor balance could be caused by lack of exercise or to a neurological cause, arthritis, or other medical conditions.  Balance is an easy one to improve.  5-10 minutes of stationary balance exercises daily will do wonders for your stability.

Blood pressure that drops too much when you get up from sitting or lying down can increase your chance of falling.  This condition is called postural hypotension.  It could result from dehydration or medication.  It might be linked to diabetes Parkinson's or blood pressure.  Again, it's easy to reduce your risk of falling.  Simply get to a sitting position from a lying down position in bed, and sit for 1-2 minutes, allowing your blood pressure to stabilize.

Poor vision may contribute to falls, including poor depth perception, confusion, cataracts and glaucoma.  Wearing multi-focal glasses while walking or having poor lighting around your an also lead to falls.  If you are confused, for example in an unfamiliar environment (hotel room), you might feel unsure of where you are.  Proceed with caution.

Reflexes may be slower as you age, which may increase your chance of a fall.  It takes a longer time to react to a fall, thus harder to catch yourself and prevent the  fall.  Again, balance exercises are so important.

The more medications you take, the more likely you are to fall.  Side effects like dizziness and confusion and contribute to the risk of falls.  If possible, take medications that might have these side effects at night.  You won't fall while you're sleeping.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that one out of every three adults older than 65 will fall each year.  Women are more than twice as likely to suffer a fracture during a fall as men of the same age, yet the death rate of men from falls is higher by a third than in women.  The cost to society of falls among the elderly exceeds $30 billion a year in direct medical expenses alone.

Many people who fall, even if they are not injured, develop a fear of falling.  This fear may cause them to limit their activities, which leads to reduced mobility and loss of physical fitness, and in turn increase their actual risk of falling.

One of the first questions your internist might ask you in an office visit (if you're over 65) is "How many times have you fallen in the past year?"  It's important for your physician to know this, and more importantly, it's imperative that you do everything you can to make the answer to that key question "ZERO."