Tai chi to prevent falls

Did you know?

In 2005, ACC funded over 200 modified tai chi classes in New Zealand for people aged over 65 years.

Injuries caused by falls have been identified as a major public health problem in New Zealand. One third of those over 65 years and 50% of people aged 80 years and over will experience a fall in any one year.

Falls can have devastating consequences for older adults, particularly those living alone. Along with serious injury or fractures, people face a possible loss of independence and a knock to their confidence too. Falls are also the leading cause of death from unintentional injury for both males and females aged over 75 years.

The causes behind the tumbles range from muscle weakness to poor balance and vision, lack of confidence and the effect of medication. Regular exercise can help by improving balance, joint, bone and muscle strength and flexibility. These in turn help reduce your risk of falling and may even help you avoid a serious injury if you do fall.

Programmes designed specifically for balance and muscle strength have been shown to reduce the number of falls and related injuries by between 30% and 50%. The most common of these programmes are modified tai chi and the Otago Exercise Programme (OEP). The OEP involves 5 or 6 home lessons from a health professional and you can practice between visits.

Tai chi is a body/mind exercise which originated in ancient China. Its movements are slow and gentle with an emphasis on body awareness – ideal for developing strength, flexibility and balance.

ACC funds tai chi classes

For several years, ACC has funded a programme offering participants 2 classes per week, of 45 minutes to an hour, over 16 weeks. To find out if you qualify for the classes, or to ask for a copy of the ACC booklet, "Standing up to Falls", call Freephone 0800 844 657 or visit the ACC website.

Writing in the publication, NZ Family Physician, Dr Paul Lam, who helped create the modified tai chi used in approximately half the ACC classes, referred to the impressive results of research carried out in Sydney. It was the world’s largest fall prevention study with 700 subjects and after 16 weeks of tai chi, there was a 35% reduction in one-off falls and approximately 70% in multiple falls. The study concluded that: “Compared with other fall prevention interventions...tai chi is one of the most effective ways of preventing falls in older people.”