How to Avoid Falls and Slips this Season
By Sara Butler
The weather can get a little perilous outside this time of year. The sidewalks can become slippery, even your driveway can be a hazard. The winter months account for a lot of accidental slips and falls – slips and falls that can do some damage to your joints and your overall health. Trauma from one of these moves can cause subluxations in your spine, even if you don’t feel it right away. The best way to avoid these problems is to take some extra steps to stay safe! Here are some tips to help you avoid slips and falls, and what you should do if you happen to experience them.
Are You At Risk?
The people most at risk for slipping and falling this time of the year are older adults, but you need to realize that falls can happen to anyone at any time. According to the National Institutes of Health, falls or slips don’t result in visible injury about 75 percent of the time, but you must remember that this doesn’t mean you didn’t get injured. Whenever you take a tumble, it’s the best course of action to get checked out by your chiropractor to make sure nothing was knocked out of place.
What You Can Do
Of course, the best thing you can do about injuries from slips or falls is to prevent them in the first place! You should take these precautions to help reduce your risk:
- Shorten your stride when walking
- Slow down
- Focus on what’s in front of you
- Refrain from cell phone use when walking
- Plan your route ahead of time
- Use handrails when you can
- Don’t carry a large load when walking
- Avoid inclines or other areas with difficult terrain
- Wear the right footwear for the weather
- Wipe your feet on mats when entering buildings
- Avoid wet floors
- Shovel snow before it turns to ice
- Salt your sidewalks and driveway
If you are already unsteady on your feet, then you should make sure to utilize something to help you walk when you’re outside and it’s slippery, such as a walking stick or cane.
If you suffer a fall or even just a slip, you should get checked out by your chiropractor as soon as possible to make sure everything is OK. Better safe than sorry – so be careful out there! Having a plan with The Joint Chiropractic will give you the opportunity to get checked regularly, and without the bother of insurance.
To learn more about your health and wellness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic.