FALLS - What causes an older person to fall?
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ENVIRONMENT - Worn carpet / floor coverings. Pieces of carpets placed over other carpets as protection. Polished floors. Clutter, things not put away and left on the floor. Dropped evelopes can be slippery. Handles of bags left on the floor are easy to catch a foot in. Coats left on the post at the bottom of the stairs. Collections of magazines & newspapers. Too much furniture. Not putting the light on, particularly to go up and down stairs or when waking in the night and going to the loo. Too little light from existing light bulbs. Cats on stairs are easy to trip over. Dogs laying on the floor. Climbing on chairs is a very frequent cause of falls. Extremes of temperature. Trailing wires from telephones, TVs, radios, irons, kettles and table lamps. Electrical sockets at the wrong height. Things stacked in too highly positioned cupboards.
FOOTWEAR - Reluctance to part with worn out slippers. Incorrectly fitting footwear. Unsupportive slippers or mules (it's better to wear shoes not slippers for the major part of the day). Soles should be non-slip. Never wear shoes until the soles have been 'scoured'. Footwear needs a functional fastening to hold it in place. Don't walk around in stocking feet.
FEET - Over long nails. pain, causing unwillingness to put foot down flat. Immobile joints. Dry cracked skin. Poor circulation causing cold numb feet. Amputations and anything causing unbalance.
Nails should be cut to a suitable length. painful corns / callous may need professional help, but can be relieved by filing with a foot-file. Daily application of emollient makes a significant difference to callous and the way the feet feel. Feet need washing with soap & water once a day. Numbness needs to be investigated.
HEALTH - Underlying disease causing dizziness or numbness. High / low blood pressure, Parkinson's Disease and Diabetes are just a few of the example which will make you more suseptable to falling. Balance problems associated with the ageing process. Malnutrician. Obesity. Alcohol abuse. Some prescription drugs. Recreational drugs.
Bone disease (Osteoporosis). Change in gait due to a variety of causes. Old prescription spectacles (take regular eye tests).
Angel Radio
Health
OLDER PEOPLE
OLDER PEOPLE
Angel Radio broadcasts music, memories and information to older people living in the Borough of Havant in Hampshire (UK) on 101.1MHz FM and worldwide at angelradio.co.uk
Angel Radio is unique, but it shouldn't be. The world is full of older people who are being largely ignored by the media.
Angel Radio is doing its bit, in a small way, to give the airwaves back to older people.
We provide music from the period 1900 - 1959 and memories of those days, together with health information and events diaries.
