Falls and apparently 'elders' are anywhere from 50 - 100 plus.
Started by Litldogtoo
Excellent two part article in New York Times:
This is part II but the link to part I is in this story. Comments are interesting, too.
nytimes/2014/11/04/science/a-tiny-stumble-a-life-upended.html
One thing I have noticed is that many seniors wear bi-focals, thus they are looking where they are walking through the *reading* section of their eyeglasses, which would present poorer vision. I know my sig other doesn't see things on the floor, like a cat toy, and steps right on it.
Thank goodness my parents don't live with me, I have brown carpeting [came with the house] and with 3 dark fur felines, it's not easy to see them sprawled out on the steps. Plus I have step down into the family room and into the guest room. I had a friend almost fall the first time I showed her my house, she didn't see the step-down, wore bi-focals.
One hassle is getting the elder to use a cane, walker or rolling walker. Mom didn't want anyone to think she was old. For Dad, it took some falls before he decided to use his cane... then a major fall with injury before he would use a rolling walker, now he love that thing :)
I know for myself, I use to quickly go down the stairs... the past couple of years, I tread real slowly because I feel like I could fall. YIKES. Then a couple of years ago my boss fell down a flight of stairs at work [he was 77], it was his fault, he was too busy yakking on his cellphone that he missed the last step.
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