I’ve fallen, but I can get back up: avoiding serious injury as we age
December 16, 2024
We likely all know someone who needed a hip replacement or suffered a broken bone in an innocuous fall in their retirement years. Recent data has shown that more than 24,000 older adults are hospitalized with fall-related hip fractures alone in Canada annually.
According to the Mayo Clinic, we continue to build bone mass until age 30, before we start breaking down more bone than we rebuild.
So is ending up in the hospital for weeks at a time from a simple trip just an inevitably we have to accept as we age? Of course not. While nothing can completely eliminate the risk of a fracture from a slip, there are several things we can do to increase the odds in our favour:
Exercise
Researchers from the University of Michigan identified strain magnitude (gymnastics, weightlifting), strain rate (jumping, plyometrics) and strain frequency (running) as exercises that have a positive impact on bone density. During weight-bearing activity, the muscles and tendons apply tension to the bones, stimulating production of more bone tissue. As a result, bones become stronger and fracture risk (as well as that of osteopenia and osteoporosis) decreases.
In one study, women who had not exercised in a year were at higher risk for hip fracture, even if they did not have osteoporosis. In another, men responded nearly as well to exercise training at 50 as they did at 20. A regular exercise routine can cut your risk of a fall by 20 per cent to 30 per cent, research has suggested. All this to say, exercise is important at all ages if you’d like to keep the fracture clinic out of sight.
And rest assured, your workouts don’t have to be Rocky-level. Even walking can help slow bone loss. You see, age is also no excuse when it comes to training. In yet another study, a group of adults 90+ improved their walking speed, balance and ability to get out of chairs, while significantly reducing incidences of falls, after just 12 weeks of workouts.
Calcium, vitamin D and protein
If you’re wondering whether you’re getting the right nutrients, Mayo Clinic has some guidance.
They advise women up to age 50 and men up to age 70 to consume 1,000 milligrams of calcium daily; women over 50 and men over 70 should get 1,200 milligrams daily. Don’t wait to hit the 1,200 mg. requirement to take calcium seriously. Pour that glass of milk now.
Now take out another for some orange juice. Aim for 600 to 800 international units (IUs) of Vitamin D daily.
And don’t forget the protein! A fundamental element of bone building, eggs, lentils, white-meat poultry, lean beef, dairy, shrimp and soy can go a long way.
Avoiding regret
Don’t wait until you feel your feet come out from under you to realize you can prepare to fend off bone-related injuries in retirement. Take care of yourself now, so that you can enjoy your retirement doing what you want to do, not what your surgeon says you need to do as you come out of that cast.
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