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 Researchers followed about 100 women aged 65 and older, offering all
of them physiotherapy twice a week with 40 minutes of nerve
stimulation and 20 minutes of massage and stretching exercises. Half
the women also received hour-long pilates sessions twice a week.
After six weeks, the women who did pilates reported a reduced fear
of falling, while the other women didn't. Pilates was also linked to
greater improvements in balance and reductions in back pain.
"Pilates exercises focus not only on physical but also on
psychological development, and mind-body interaction is the main
principal of the method," lead author Dr. Fidel Hita-Contreras of
the University of Jaen in Spain said by email.
Millions of people worldwide suffer from lower back pain at some
point in their lives, and the risk increases with age. Symptoms can
range from a dull, constant ache to a sudden sharp pain that makes
it difficult to move.
Fear of falling is a major health problem among the elderly,
associated not only with actual risk of falling but also with less
physical activity, avoidance of daily activities, and lower quality
of life, Hita-Contreras and colleagues note in the journal Maturitas.
Pilates uses a series of controlled movements to improve core
strength, posture and balance. The exercises concentrate on
strengthening muscles in the lower and upper back, hips, buttocks
and inner thighs.
Although pilates is widely recommended by doctors and physical
therapists as a tool to improve balance and reduce falls, few
studies have evaluated its effectiveness in women over 65 living
with back pain, the researchers note.
At the start of the study, the women were about 71 years old on
average and generally within a healthy weight range. Most were
married, almost half had at least some college education, and
slightly less than a third were still working.
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Researchers used a questionnaire to assess fear of falling at the
start and end of the study.
To detect changes in balance, researchers gave the women a timed
test requiring them to stand up from a chair, walk three meters,
turn around, and sit down again. They also questioned women about
pain associated with these activities.
The study is small, and the results may not apply to younger women,
the researchers acknowledge. More studies are also needed to
evaluate the long-term effects of pilates, the authors note.
Still, the results add to evidence that pilates can have a positive
impact on balance after less than two months of workouts, said
Cherie Wells, a physiotherapy researcher at the University of
Canberra in Australia who wasn't involved in the study.
"While improvements may be even greater with a longer pilates
exercise program, women may find improvements as early as six
weeks," Wells said by email. "I would think, though, that it is
important to maintain strength and fitness with ongoing exercise to
prevent decline in the future."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1K2NNoa Maturitas, published online August 3,
2015.
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