Again, Robert Preidt has written a great article Thigh Fat May Slow Down Seniors for the elderly saying that increasing amounts of thigh fat contribute to slower walking speed in otherwise healthy seniors, according to a new study. (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_134287.html)
The article explains that adults with a slower walking speed has been shown to be a predictor of disability, admission to a nursing home and even death. When generally observing the average elderly person, the older they get, the harder it becomes for them to walk at a normal pace however through the research of this study, delaying the age-related decline in walking speed could help extend the number of years that seniors can live independently.
A quotation included is “As people age, they are more likely to gain fat in and around their muscles, and we speculated that gaining fat in the leg muscle itself would be related to slowed walking speed,” study author Kristen Beavers said in a Wake Forest news release. This study also found that participants who gained the most thigh fat and lost the most thigh muscle had the greatest risk of suffering a notable decline in walking speed.
This article is informative and helpful as it is not un-common for elderly people to struggle with their walking, but as there is some research that shows that thigh fat contributes to slower walking speed, this can help as a preventative measure for the elderly to help them fit, active and healthy for longer.
tlcupdate 