The speed someone walks may predict the likelihood of developing dementia later in life, according to researchers in the US. They also told a conference that grip strength in middle-age was linked to the chance of a stroke. The scientists said more studies were needed to understand what was happening. Experts said the findings raised important questions, but more research was needed. Suggestions of a link between s... (read more)
The ancient Chinese art characterised by slow controlled movements helped Parkinson's patients with balance and control and resulted in fewer falls, when compared with other exercises it was found. The findings were published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). Lead author Dr Fuzhong Li, from the Oregon Research Institute, found a tailored program of twice-weekly Tai Chi training... (read more)
People with Parkinson's disease swing their arms asymmetrically -- one arm swings less than the other -- when walking. This unusual movement is easily detected early when drugs and other interventions may help slow the disease, according to Penn State researchers who used inexpensive accelerometers on the arms of Parkinson's disease patients to measure arm swing. "Scientists have kno... (read more)
When Dr. John Fryer and Dr. Huda Zoghbi prescribed mild exercise for mice with a neurodegenerative disorder called spinocerebellar ataxia 1 (SCA1), they did not know what to expect. Fryer, then a postdoctoral associate in the lab of Zoghbi who co-discovered the gene for the disorder, was disappointed when the exercise did not affect the mice's gait or walking ability. However, he and Zoghbi decided to put them back... (read more)
Gait is the pattern of movement of the limbs of animals, including humans, during locomotion over a solid substrate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gait
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