We are now firmly into the winter season and while many
of us have a reprieve from the blistering cold we must be concerned about
slipping on the ice and snow.
Falling is a potentially fatal circumstance that claims
the lives of over a half a million Americans each year.
Slipping in particular carries with it the most consequence for fatal injury as people are more likely to hit their pelvis, spine or head.
Slips are caused when our base of support, our feet, move
beyond our center of gravity (out from under us).
To assess your risk from falling as a result of a slip try the following.
Pretend to stand on the face of a clock (12 o'clock
is forward, 6 back, 3 to your right and 9 o'clock to your left). With
your feet parallel and shoulder width apart, pretend that the soles of your
feet are cemented to the floor as you move your body and legs toward each of
the clocks directions. You will realize that the direction that is most
difficult to maintain your balance is the 6 o'clock this direction. This is the
direction of movement that occurs with slipping.
I experienced this phenomenon twice recently during my
vacation up north. One fall occurred on flat ground the other was down four
concrete steps and happened in spite of my holding on to a handrail.
Given that my balance is pretty good, I became concerned
for my patients and began to think what could be done to have prevent slips and
what advice would I give for falling?
I came up with the following:
- Bend your knees about 10 degrees: This lowers your center of gravity and increases your weight bearing over the front of your foot. This will do 2 things, it will counteract backward momentum and allow more weight over your toes allowing you to grip onto the floor.
- Flex your trunk forward. This will also counteract the momentum of a slip backward and will give you move time to react in the air to better position yourself for impact.
- Maintain contact with the ground continuously. ie. skate over a slippery surfaces. You have much greater balance when 2 feet are on the floor versus one.
- Use devices that will assist with traction such as: crampons, a walking stick or ski poles. These will provide traction and additional bases of support on the icy or slippery snow
- When going up or down stairs face the railing with your body and place both hands on it. Go up or down the stairs sideways. This is the 3 and 9 o'clock movements and you have greater balance with sway over the sides of your body versus the 6 o'clock direction.
- Don't panic: When you panic you tense your muscles which prevent them from absorbing shock. Think of the drunk driver who walks away from a devastating crash with barely a scratch.
- Try to land across a broad surface and multiple body parts. This will disburse the impact of the fall through your body rather than target it at one specific spot.
- If you are falling backward try to rotate your pelvis to land in the middle of one butt cheek. It is usually the most padded area of a person's body.
