Betty Perkins-Carpenter, PhD, introduces a book, called How to Prevent Falls: Better Balance, Independence, and Energy in 6 Simple Steps, which teaches seniors six steps to reduce injuries and fears associated with falling.

“Reducing the fear of falling is half the battle,” Perkins-Carpenter says. “For years, we have felt that falling was a part of the aging process. However, if seniors follow my six steps, they will greatly reduce their chances of falling and improve their chances of living a longer and healthier life.”

As more Baby Boomers reach retirement age, fall-related injuries will increase demands on family finances and on an already fragile health care system, according to Perkins-Carpenter. It isn't always possible to prevent illnesses that change our lives, but it is possible to either prevent and/or minimize most of the falls that plague our senior citizens, she says.

Perkins-Carpenter's Six Step Balance System™ includes:

1) Stretching In Bed: Stretching is key to flexibility and mobility because it creates warmth in our muscles and ligaments. Warm muscles function better than cold ones.

2) Practicing Your Balance: Balance is the basis for all movement. Good balance promotes better posture, increased confidence, leg strength, and overall stability.

3) Bouncing a Ball: Improve your balance and dexterity by bouncing a ball. Constantly repositioning the body keeps it naturally aware of its surroundings.

4) Walking While Talking on the Phone: This exercise focuses on dual tasks and involves both hemispheres of the brain to improve balance.

5) The Slump (formerly known as the “10 Martini Slump”): Each time you sit down to watch television, practice the art of falling with a relaxed slump into a comfortable chair and at nighttime into your bed. You reduce the fear of falling by becoming an expert in falling.

6) Dancing with Your Pillow: Using a pillow as a dancing partner brings about a positive and significant impact on reducing falls and the debilitating injuries they cause. Dancing develops strong muscles, and improves flexibility, coordination, agility, and balance. 

A new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that traumatic brain injuries due to falls caused nearly 8,000 deaths and 56,000 hospitalizations in 2005 among Americans 65 or older. The CDC, which recently declared seniors falling a national epidemic, also reports that every 35 minutes, an older American dies as the result of a fall, and every 18 seconds an older adult is treated in emergency departments after a fall.