NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Conventional walking is good
for older adults, and walking on a synthetic mat embedded with
smooth stones is even better, researchers have shown.
Walking on the so-called cobblestone mat improves physical
function and reduces blood pressure to a greater extent than
regular walking, according to findings published in the Journal
of the American Geriatrics Society.
The idea is that the stone surfaces stimulate acupoints on
the soles of the feet, which “elicit therapeutic responses that
may contribute to health aging.”
To look into this, Dr. Fuzhong Li, of the Oregon Research
Institute, Eugene, and colleagues compared the effects of
cobblestone mat walking with regular walking in 108 adults who
averaged 77.5 years in age. They were physically inactive but
free of neurological and mobility-limiting orthopedic
conditions.
The subjects participated in 60-minute group exercise
sessions of cobblestone mat walking or regular walking three
times per week for 16 weeks.
“Compared to the control condition of regular walking,
walking on the uneven, bumpy river-rock like surface of these
mats brought about health-related outcomes of reduced blood
pressure … as well as improvements in selected measures of
balance and physical function (reach, standing and rising from
a chair, and walking speed) in our sample of older adults,” Li
told Reuters Health.
“Since hypertension is a major risk factor for
cardiovascular disease and stroke, the outcomes have potential
for improving the overall heart health of many people who may
be at risk for cardiovascular disease,” Li noted.
While cobblestone mat walking was effective, he said, “it
must also be said that regular walking was also beneficial to
the walkers, and must continue to be a wonderful and popular
form of exercise for people of all ages.”
Future research “might explore the potential for this
exercise modality on patients with higher blood pressure levels
than our participants,” he added.
In addition, “it would be interesting to explore the
mechanisms … that might help to explain the reasons why foot
stimulation influences blood pressure, balance, and functional
performance of older adults.”
SOURCE: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, August
2005.
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