Life is in motion. As one of the most basic human activities, walking has become the best sport widely recognized by the medical community. Recently, a new study pointed out that the risk of fracture is higher for people who have to walk a kilometer. Jia Rong, deputy chief physician of the Department of Geriatrics of Peking University People's Hospital, and Xu Hailin, chief physician of the Department of Orthopaedics, remind the general public to be particularly careful and take care of the elderly and the infirm who are not far away.
■ Walk to find out health problems ■
Walking seems to be a simple and daily lifestyle, but it is actually a complex process involving balance, leg movement, foot to ground contact, forward center of gravity and other multiple body systems working together, including bones, muscles, nervous system, cardiovascular system and respiratory system.
The range of motion of walking is not only walking, but also cooking, washing, sweeping and other household chores. During the whole process, the cardiovascular system provides the muscles with the oxygen and nutrients they need, and discharges metabolic wastes. The respiratory system can meet the oxygen demand of the body during exercise by adjusting the breathing rhythm.
For most people, 6000 to 8000 steps a day is a relatively appropriate range. Steps within this range can help us improve cardiopulmonary function, strengthen muscle strength, promote metabolism, relieve stress and anxiety, help control weight, and reduce the risk of heart disease, hypertension and stroke.
The gait, pace and endurance in the process of walking become clues to assess the health status, which can reflect the health status of the human body. Therefore, by observing and analyzing the walking process, potential health problems can be found in time.
■ Four indicators "predict" walking ability ■
The decline of walking ability is generally judged by the number of steps, pace, gait and whether it is uncomfortable/painful.
First, the reduction of steps is an obvious indicator of the decline of walking ability. This reduction may be due to the weakening of muscle strength, joint stiffness and other reasons.
Secondly, for the elderly or people with special health problems, walking speed can reflect the cardiopulmonary function, joint activity and cognitive ability. In general, the elderly with normal walking speed are in good health, while the elderly with slower walking speed less than 0.6 meters per second will have a higher incidence of falls and osteoporosis.
In addition, the stability of gait is closely related to muscle strength, balance ability, nervous system function and other factors. If the gait is unstable when walking, it is easy to shake or fall.
Finally, feeling pain or discomfort when walking may mean that there are problems in some parts of the body, such as arthritis, muscle strain, etc.
■ Which old people do you like to "stare" at when you have walking obstacles? ■
The simplest and most basic walking action requires not only the participation of joint bones, but also the cooperation of tendons and muscles. After people get old, osteoporosis and sarcopenia caused by both bone mass reduction in the skeletal system and muscle mass reduction in the muscular system are closely related to the decline of walking ability of the elderly. Among them, the most common diseases that lead to walking disorders of the elderly are: lumbar intervertebral disc herniation and lumbar spinal stenosis, lower limb joint degeneration and osteoporosis.
Lumbar disc herniation compresses the lumbar nerve root, causing low back pain and sciatica, radiating to both lower limbs, causing numbness, weakness, etc., or the spinal cord in the spinal canal is compressed, causing the spinal cord conductivity to be weakened, and gradually the legs become heavy and unable to walk.
Degenerative joint disease and overstrain lead to joint pain and stiffness. Hyperplastic bone stimulates surrounding soft tissues when walking, causing obvious leg pain and walking difficulty.
The high incidence of osteoporosis is among postmenopausal women and men over 70 years of age, as well as patients with some long-term chronic diseases or long-term steroids. The risk of osteoporosis in women is higher than that in men because of the obvious drop of estrogen after menopause.
In addition to the above diseases, varicose veins and venous valve insufficiency of lower limbs, lactic acid accumulation in muscles caused by overwork, muscle spasm caused by calcium deficiency, joint swelling and pain caused by meniscus injury, neurological dysfunction caused by cerebral infarction, lower limb fractures, malnutrition, polymyositis, peripheral neuropathy, etc. may also lead to a long way to go.
■ Resistance training strengthens "muscle" and improves "quality" ■
Clinical findings show that there are significant differences in physical, mental health and quality of life between the elderly who like sports for a long time and those who do not like sports. The elderly who are lazy often have large stomachs, weak lower limbs and few muscles on the legs, often accompanied by joint problems... thus increasing the risk of accidents such as falls and fractures.
For such old people, attention should be paid to the training of strengthening muscle strength. It is recommended that old people use lightweight resistance tools such as elastic bands and sandbags to conduct resistance training under the guidance of doctors according to their own physical conditions; You can also do some aerobic exercise, including fast walking, jogging, shadowboxing, square dancing, etc.
Experts suggest that "resistance" training is not only for outdoor activities. For patients who are not suitable for outdoor exercise, it is recommended to do it at home. Even bedridden patients can achieve certain results through passive training of lower limbs - lifting legs and hooking feet. Experts emphasized that if the walking obstacle is related to aging, lack of exercise or disease, as long as the primary disease is actively treated, exercise is strengthened to increase muscle strength, a positive attitude is maintained, good communication with doctors, and reasonable plans are formulated, this walking difficulty can also be reversed.
■ Mastering unique skills to prevent falls ■
For families with elderly people, preventing falls is a very important task. Experts suggest that, first of all, auxiliary protection facilities should be installed at home under the guidance of professionals to provide a safe and comfortable living environment. It usually includes the installation of bedside guardrails for the elderly to get on and off the bed; Armchairs shall be installed in toilets, bathrooms, corridors and other places, and handrails shall be installed beside the corridor walls to help the elderly keep stable when standing or sitting down; Restrooms shall be reconstructed, and toilet height increasers, handrails and anti-skid pads shall be installed to facilitate the elderly to do a good job in personal hygiene; Do a good job of anti-skid treatment, use anti-skid mats or anti-skid tiles in wet areas such as bathrooms and kitchens to reduce the risk of slipping; Set barrier free channels, remove obstacles in the home, and keep the channels unblocked; Smart home devices such as voice assistant and automatic door opening and closing can also be used to facilitate the elderly to live independently at home.
Vision problems are also an important cause of falls. Therefore, your eyesight should be checked regularly. If you have vision problems, you should wear appropriate glasses in time. In addition, attention should be paid to whether the shoes fit, are anti-skid, and are too large.
At the same time, encouraging the elderly to take appropriate exercise to enhance muscle strength and balance ability is also an effective way to prevent falls. If the elderly fall down accidentally, they should seek medical treatment in time and receive professional treatment to reduce the occurrence of complications.
□ Our reporter Zong Xiaochang Correspondent Zhong Yanyu
