Cold Feet And Falls Prevention Through Pre Movement

Cold Feet

Some people have cold feet because of the weather, this is not much of a problem because they know they will warm up when the weather does-some who have them because of poor leg circulation will never warm up

Some people's boundaries may be limited by factors which include medical conditions, age, pain, physical restrictions, illness or other contributors

Of course anyone with medical conditions should consult with their physician or other health professional before trying alternative treatments as there may be underlying issues that have to be resolved- anything done without appropriate consultation and advice can worsen conditions

Whatever age you are there is still have the same requirements to circulate the blood in the body-the heart sends fresh blood out to all areas through the arteries-and the veins get it back to the body again for refreshment and recycling

Cold:

Cold can be used in a qualified way as an anesthetic to dull or block pain during and after medical procedures-this same principle also applies in the elderly in a way that can cause falls when the feet are cold-it may block the messages from the bottoms of the feet being sent up to the brain

This feedback is needed to inform the brain about the environment of the floor surface underneath the body-lack of feedback can be dangerous for the elderly person who may not have the visual senses for avoiding any situations they may encounter that may trip them

Lack of movement and cold feet:

Cold feet in the elderly can be contributed to by little or restricted movement leading to poor circulation-warm blood can't reach the feet because used cold is trapped there blocking the way of fresh warm blood

The elderly spend long periods sitting down-during this time the muscles are stiffening through lack of use-the brain/mind/muscle combination has parted ways or become uncoordinated-they lack the skillful and effective interaction of muscle movements brought about through lack of use

To demonstrate this effect to someone who is not elderly:

Walk around any museum, art gallery, or shopping center for 2 to 3 hours or until the legs ache-then take go for a coffee and sit down for 20 minutes or so to rest the legs-try not to move them-then without any preparation stand up straight and walk naturally-you walk stiffly until the feet have warmed and the muscles stretched and made communication with the brain

Pre-Movement for the elderly:

It is recognized in many areas particularly the sporting one that doing a muscle warm-up before any activity can benefit them by reducing the chances of injury

Pre-movement warm-ups for the elderly older can benefit them just as much as the younger fitter members of our society who are into sport who do them as part of an injury reducing strategy

Simulating a walk before actually attempting provides a way of preparing the muscles and feet so that falls may be minimized when moving is attempted because it pre-warns the legs and brain that motion is imminent

It warms the muscles before intense activity

It passively stretches muscles that have possibly been immobile for many hours

It manually works the calf muscle pump to send some of the used blood up the legs so it can be replaced by fresh warm blood and warm the feet-circulation is not working properly so fresh blood can't get to the leg muscles

Passive leg movement followed by active movement can stimulate the stretch receptors in the muscles and pressure receptors in the bottoms of the feet to provide feedback to the brain-this prepares them for standing and supporting themselves when they contact the floor surface

Conventional massage systems do not provide this preparation

All have their place in appropriate circumstances such as soft tissue repair and rehabilitation after injury-relaxation or whatever their objective is but it is inappropriate for pre-movement for the elderly for various reasons

A weakness is that they rely on the training and skills of whoever does the work on the muscles and to get these skills needs long training and studying and not all carers and those nursing the elderly have the aptitude or the physical capacity for this

Other disadvantages to using this approach with elderly people are:

Undressing or disrobing is needed to have oil applied

Cold:

The skin-heat and cold:

The skin is the largest organ in the body-it has many functions-it is the first line of protection against bacteria

It acts as a radiator when the body is too hot-it can close down and keep heat in when the body is too cold

In the skin and muscle tissues underneath it are touch, pressure, pain, pleasure, heat and cold sensors and receptors, all have the purpose of providing feedback to the brain about the body and where it is in relation to the environment.

While being a protector of the body it can also be a conductor of bacteria when skin integrity has deteriorated-this happens with time in bed or sitting down-pressure sores can develop and become infected

Conventional systems work on the muscles and need oil to avoid friction burns-to do this large areas of skin have to be exposed-clothing has to be removed to allow this

Rubbing the skin, generates heat by friction and this is lost from the body in a number of ways

Convection:
As cold air passes over the body it lowers the skin temperature, the body tries to compensate by increasing the flow of warm blood to the surface-this is also cooled by the air flow

Radiation:
Heat radiates from the skin into the surrounding air

Conduction:
Heat passes from a hotter surface to a cold medium that absorbs it-oil

Evaporation:
Warm blood bringing heat to the surface of the skin where sweat it changes into moisture

Other factors that may make conventional systems unsuitable are:

Uncontrolled Finger Force:
Working on the muscles with the fingers concentrating pressure into the muscle tissues it is difficult to predict how much force is being used-or what effect on the muscle tissues it is having or what the after effects will be

Pain stimulation:
Rubbing skin of someone who is sore will stimulate pain receptors in the skin and muscle tissues

Pain:
They may be in pain issues that may be aggravated by aggressive stimulation of pain receptors-pain may also restrict how much movement can be made without having to get into the awkward positions needed to disrobe them

Medication:
Medication is usually being taken; if it is a drug like wafarin which thins the blood the levels can be affected by massage- there is a possibility of working too deeply and causing a bleed into the tissues

Skin Integrity:
Restricted movement may have reduced changing of position to alleviate pressure on parts of the body, so sore spots and pressure sores may develop-these can't be massaged over

Oil Reaction:
Skin Dermatitis and allergic reactions
People who have restricted movement can have allergic reactions to oil and what is in it

Chemical reactions:
Contact with the skin from perfumes, to creams, oils to naturally occurring substances-anything that is put on the skin can cause a reaction

Introduced reactions:
Skin integrity is very important to prevent bacteria entering the body-thin skin tearing and possibly introducing infection through bacteria breeding in towels if not washed properly

Stickiness:
Oil needs to be removed from the skin-if it is not it can attract dirt and grit that can turn into a paste

Oil spills:
It is difficult to work on someone who is confined to bed and prevent oil spills if they are infirm and have shaking or tremors

Lack of room:
Many places have problems with the lack of space around the working area

Ability to adjust position:
It can be awkward to adjust the position of someone who is heavy, there is lack of room to move or there are too many aids and equipment around them-there may be catheter bags attached to legs that may be accidentally unplugged

Dressings:
Dressings may be covering the areas that need to be worked on-these may be too large to work over and around

Hygiene:
Not everyone is in a hospital situation where clean sheets are obtainable-they may be in a home situation where hot water is not available or sufficient means of washing them at hand

Incontinence is a problem for many people with restricted movement, this means working around smelly wet sheets-these are horrible to wash out at the best of times but if they are mixed with oil that has gone rancid they are unusable

To summarize:

There are many variables when using conventional systems when working with the elderly-and this does not take into account things like dementia-Osteoporosis-Osteo Arthritis-Rheumatoid Arthritis-Diabetes or assorted afflictions associated with age that are not recommended to have massage done

The elderly are never going to be made better so all that is needed is some light work on them, to keep the circulation flowing, the feet warm, and the coordination maintained to minimize the chances of them falling

Carers:

Many injuries to carers happen not because they were careless, but because the person they were moving could not help even if they wanted to because they were not prepared for it-adequate preparation before moving can help both carer and person being moved to reduce the risk of injury to both of them

Training:
There are not too many massage schools in poorer countries or country areas and even less teaching how to increase circulation without using expensive drugs

Many people cannot afford the cost of ancillary modalities and the extra care needed in looking after someone with movement that is restricted and has cold feet through the calf muscle pump not working properly

In the countries that do have health care systems like Australia, the money allocated does not cover the cost of hiring massage therapists, so having one work on someone in the hospital or home situations depends on the ability to pay

a cheap natural alternative do it yourself option for keeping the legs moving and the feet warmer to reduce accidents is to do pre-movement

By: jakedog

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Pre Movement of elderly people's legs is simple to do using Light Manual Muscle Relaxation seniors.aching-legs-relief.com/older_parents_pre-movement.html a simple legs movement system that warms the feet and prepares the muscles before they have to work