Balancing it All
To me, balance can be one of those things that we just don’t appreciate until its gone. It is hard to tell just how much more difficult our lives would be if we struggled with balance, even just a little. Any kind of movement becomes more difficult, standing still turns into a challenge, and doing basic, daily chores can take far more time than with good balance.
Injuries to the spine, the head, and even the arms and legs can be the cause of balance problems; diseases like Parkinson’s can also interfere with one’s ability to balance correctly. Many of these root causes are long-lasting, meaning that we don’t have a treatment that can get rid of them forever.
We do have, however, the ability to treat balance issues, and one of the treatments is physical therapy.
Bettering Bad Balance
There are a few different methods that physical therapists can use to help improve balance, most of which involve exercises that the patient does during physical therapy sessions and at home. Research suggests that an exercise approach not only is effective at reducing balance issues in the short term, but can also be useful for the months after the program is over.
In a 2017 study entitled “Long-term effects of exercise and physical therapy in people with Parkinson disease,” researchers were able to find evidence that, in some instances, exercise programs that physical therapists use have a positive effect up to a year after the program.
Here are some of their findings on the different kinds of physical therapy programs for balance problems, and how long of a positive effect these programs had on patients.
- Most progressive strength and aerobic endurance training programmes have positive effects that last for 12 weeks
- Extended progressive strength training improves muscle strength for up to 24 months and aerobic endurance training increases walking capacity at 6–16 months
- Balance training improves balance, gait and mobility, and reduces falls for up to 12 months after completion of treatment
- Gait training improves gait performance and walking capacity for up to 6 months after training
- Tai chi and dance improve balance and tai chi reduces fall frequency up to 6 months after training
Physical Therapy and… Video Games?
If you aren’t familiar with the Nintendo Wii video game console, I am very sorry, because you are missing out on some serious fun. More than that, though, you may be missing out on some serious fun physical therapy.
A small 2012 study published their research in Physiotherapy, a medical journal that covers a wide range of topics. This study focused on using a feature of the Nintendo Wii console, Wii Fit, to improve balance, gait, and avoid falls. They selected 17 individuals between 53 and 91 years old, taught them how to use Wii Fit, and simply gathered the results.
Wii Fit uses the Nintendo Wii’s motion tracking technology to provide guided exercises that are adjusted for age, desired outcome, intensity level, and more. For what is technically a video game, the Wii Fit program turned out to be a fun way for many to lose weight and improve their health. For these 17 individuals in the study, it also greatly improved their balance.
When it came time to gather the results, the study found that “all subjects showed improvement” in their balance, posture, and gait. Furthermore, the researchers concluded that “Wii Fit training appears to improve balance. However, physical therapy training on its own or in addition to Wii Fit training appears to improve balance to a greater extent than Wii Fit training alone.”
Of course, a video game, no matter how apparently helpful it may be, is an ancillary tool for hands-on physical therapy, but it does go to show how many effective ways there are to treat balance issues in patients.
