At my Cincinnati Chiropractic Clinic I treat many elders who suffer from balance problems. In fact, dizziness, “wooziness,” and other balance-related challenges affect at least nine percent of adults, aged 65 and over. Good balance is crucial, of course, in assisting older adults in remaining independent and in avoiding falls and sustaining injuries that are commonly extremely serious or even fatal. But, it may surprise you to know that falls produce a large number of work-related injuries for adults under 65 years of age, including workers in their twenties and thirties. That’s right! No one is immune to balance challenges, no matter what their age may be. It is for this reason that those who work in “high places” like construction workers, roofers, oil platform employees, windows cleaners, or anywhere else where a ladder is required are far more vulnerable to serious injury if their balance is “off.”
The primary function of good balance is to aid us in managing and maintaining our body position, whether we are standing still or moving, and whether we are on the ground or high up on a platform. Good balance helps us to walk without faltering, arise from a sitting position without tottering, and to climb stairs without tripping. It is obvious, then, that good balance is crucial to our health and well-being.
What you may not have realized, however, could have a balance problem without realizing how serious it is. On occasion a person may be able to “shake off” a dizzy sensation and the feeling may not come back for a while. But, when precipetous dizziness comes about at a consequential moment, it is too late to shake it off and a fall is usually unpreventable.
Vertigo is the medical name for the feeling that you, or objects around you, are spinning. About 40 percent of individuals in the U.S. will have at least one incidence of dizziness that is serious enough to seek out a health professional, such as your Chiropractor in Cincinnati. But, if you work at any of the jobs listed above, having a chiropractor check your balance prior to a distinct episode of vertigo, make corrections if needed, and then aid you in maintaining good balance, may save you from serious injury or worse.
Balance disorders are dangerous at any age. If you feel as if you may have a possible balance disorder, it is essential for you to be diagnosed and treated without delay. In fact, if you can answer “yes” to any of the following questions, even if the experience is seldom or infrequent, it is highly recommended that you discuss the symptom(s) with a chiropractor as soon as possible:
• Have you experienced a feeling of being “unsteady?”
• Has the room seemed to spin around you?
• Has there ever a time when you felt as if you were moving when you knew you were standing still?
• Have you lost your balance and/or fallen down?
• Have you ever felt as if you were falling?
• Has your vision ever become “blurred?”
• Have you ever felt disoriented, or lost a sense of time, place or identity?
It is important for you to remember that balance problems are not confined to a particular age group. From the time we learn to walk until we take our final step, our falling down is possible. If you work in a job that makes your falling down a “critical” event, you need to have your balance checked. Don’t wait until it’s too late! If you’re in the Cincinnati area, give Cincinnati chiropractic a call today!