Difficulty to stand on one leg for 10 seconds in middle and later life linked to premature death: Study

Standing on one leg can be a potential indicator of your health. As weird as it may sound to you, but this is what a group of researchers have found out. In their study they have linked the inability to stand on one leg for 10 seconds with an increase in the risk of death.

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"Our aim was to assess whether the ability to complete a 10-s one-legged stance (10-second OLS) is associated with all-cause mortality and whether it adds relevant prognostic information beyond ordinary demographic, anthropometric and clinical data," the study says.

A total of 1702 individuals had participated in the study.

Balance quickly diminishes after the mid 50s increasing the risk for falls and other adverse health outcomes, the researchers have said and added that ageing is directly associated with a progressive decline in physical fitness.

The study has stressed on the importance of flexibility and balance on the overall health and how older individuals with frailty are more prone to serious health complications, few of which are life threatening.

Participants were asked to stand on a flat platform

Static balance was measured by the ability of the individual to complete 10 seconds in one legged standing.

The participant was allowed to stand on left foot or right foot.

Physician or a nurse assistant was in proximity to prevent falls and injuries.

Additionally, participants were asked to keep their elbows extended, the arms naturally placed close to their body and instructed to fix their gaze on an eye-level point at a 2-m distance.

The study found that the proportion of people who could not complete the 10 second standing task was the highest among older individuals.

4.7% of people among 51-55 years of age could not complete the task. This rate was more than 50% among 71-75 years old people.

"The proportion of NO responders was 4.7% among those 51–55 years, 8.1% at 56–60 years, 17.8% at 61–65 years and 36.8% at 66–70 years. In the age group of 71–75 years, the majority of the participants (53.6%) were unable to successfully complete the 10-s OLS," the researchers have said and have added that the inability to complete the test, that is, 10-s OLS with either the right or left foot, increasing with aging, practically doubling at each subsequent 5-year age-group intervals beginning at age group of 51–55 years.

After establishing the connection between body balance and death, the researchers have drawn attention towards an alarming data.

"Each year an estimated 684000 individuals die from falls globally, of which over 80% are in low/middle-income countries. While it is known that good levels of balance are relevant for many daily life activities, there is considerable evidence that loss of balance is also detrimental for health and that some

exercise interventions may improve balance," the researchers have said.

The study found that middle-aged and older participants who were unable to complete the task had lower survival and 84% higher risk of all-cause mortality.

As per the data from the World Health Organisation (WHO), adults older than 60 years of age suffer the greatest number of fatal falls and surprisingly more than 35 millions falls are so severe that they need immediate medical attention.

Over 80% of fall-related fatalities occur in low- and middle-income countries, with regions of the Western Pacific and SouthEast Asia accounting for 60% of these deaths, the global health agency says.

Even the WHO recommends balance exercise like functional training, Tai Chi, for improving the balance in older people.

In addition to this, the WHO had also recommended home assessment, withdrawal of psychotropic drugs, inclusion of vitamin D supplements for older people to increase the body balance and decrease the deaths associated with it.