Midlife cognitive training could improve balance in later life

One of the most common causes of injury and death is falling in later life, according to new research.

Researchers from University College London found that poor levels of word memory, verbal fluency, processing speed and cognitive ability in our 50s are early indicators of worsening balance in later life, a condition that increases the risk of falls, injury and death.

It is possible that cognitive training in midlife could have a positive impact on balance as we age.

The research shows that there is a strong cognitive component involved in successful balance. It may be useful to investigate if interventions that improve cognitive skills can also improve balance.

The research shows that balance ability is related to cognitive ability, and that the neural integration of sensory input and motor response required to maintain balance is one of the physical capability measures most closely linked to cognitive ability.

Falls are the most common cause of injury-related deaths in people over the age of 75, costing the health service around 1 billion dollars a year. Accidental death is the most common cause of hip fractures in older people.

Falling in later life is seen as an inevitable part of growing older. According to Blodgett, her findings from a study of 3,000 people from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development, a British birth cohort study, and published in the Journals of Gerontology, could enable targeted interventions in midlife that will protect people in later life.

Blodgett said that the ability to balance depends on cognitive processing of information. Our body senses through movement and position, as well as stimulation identified by our inner ear and fed back to the brain, from what we see.

She said that simple cognitive tests could identify individuals at risk of poor balance.

It's important to understand these associations earlier in midlife, either before or in the early stages of decline, to prevent or mitigate loss of independent mobility.

Blodgett said that no previous study investigated age related changes between cognitive processes and balance in midlife.

Blodgett's research was welcomed by the Age UK Policy Manager, who said it should be included in the health check for people over the age of 40.

The paper was insightful, according to a professor at Glasgow Caledonian University. You need a lot of things going on in the brain to be able to deal with that.