OLD people who exercise are less likely to have a fall, and if they do they are less likely to injure themselves, according to a study in the current issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The study was sponsored by the National Institute on Aging, which was concerned that every year about 30 per cent of people over the age of 65 have a fall, and between 10 and 15 per cent of the falls result in injuries. The institute wanted to see if exercise helped old people to stay upright.
The institute鈥檚 researchers carried out eight separate studies with different forms of exercise, ranging from t鈥檃i chi to weight training. Taken as a whole, exercise reduced the likelihood of falling by about 10 per cent; if the exercise involved balance, the likelihood was reduced by 17 per cent. T鈥檃i chi was one of the best exercises, reducing falls by 37 per cent.
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