Did you know that a simple 10-second test can tell how likely you are to die in the next seven years?
A new study shows that the ability to stand on one leg for at least 10 seconds is strongly linked to the risk of death over the next 7 years.
According to the findings, people in middle age and older who couldn't perform the 10-second standing test were nearly four times as likely to die of any cause ― heart attacks, strokes, cancer, and more ― in the coming years than those who could, well, stand the test of time.
Claudio Gil Araújo, MD, PhD, research director of the Exercise Medicine Clinic-CLINIMEX in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, who led the study, called the results "awesome!"
"As a physician who has worked with cardiac patients for over four decades, I was very impressed in finding out that, for those between 51 and 75 years of age, it is riskier for survival to not complete the 10-second one-leg standing test than to have been diagnosed as having coronary artery disease or in being hypertensive" or having abnormal cholesterol, Araújo told Medscape Medical News.
The findings appear today in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
Researchers have known for at least a half century that balance and mortality are connected. One reason is falls: Worldwide, nearly 700,000 people each year die as a result of a fall, according to the World Health Organization, and more than 37 million falls annually require medical attention. But as the new study indicates, falls aren't the only problem.
Araújo and his colleagues have been working on ways to improve balance and strength as people age. In addition to the one-legged standing test, they have previously shown that the ability to rise from a sitting position on the floor is also a strong predictor of longevity.
How to do this test?
We do these tests at our Hospital. Here is the simple procedure.
Keeping fit is also equally important.
Please exercise regularly, 30 minutes of walking per day 5 days a week is the recommended minimum.
Good info