Exercise can reduce fall risk among older women taking multiple medications
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- Reviewed by Toni Golen, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Women's Health Watch; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing; Contributor
A structured exercise plan significantly reduced falls among older women taking multiple medications, according to an analysis published Feb. 19, 2025, by Scientific Reports.
The study included 914 women born between 1932 and 1945 (average age 77 at the study’s start). Half were assigned to an exercise intervention group and half to a group given no special exercise instructions. The exercise group participated in twice-weekly guided sessions for the first six months that included tai chi on one day and circuit training on the other. All participants underwent fitness tests at the beginning of the study as well as one and two years later. They also completed questionnaires reporting their medication use and were split into six groups based on the number of medications they used. Every two weeks, they texted with researchers to report any falls.
After two years, participants had reported 1,380 falls, with just over half resulting in injury and about 5% causing a bone fracture. Women in the exercise group who used four or more medications had the lowest fall risk among all participants — 29% lower than women in the control group who used no medications or only one. Since taking multiple medications is linked with a greater chance of falling, study authors said, fall prevention efforts among older adults who do so should focus on boosting physical activity levels.
Image: © Tim Platt/Getty Images
About the Author
Maureen Salamon, Executive Editor, Harvard Women's Health Watch
About the Reviewer
Toni Golen, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Women's Health Watch; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing; Contributor
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