Scientists at Emory University studied how aging and Parkinson's disease change the way people maintain their balance. The research team, led by Lena Ting, wanted to understand what happens in the brain and muscles when someone starts to lose their balance.
The researchers created sudden balance challenges by quickly destabilizing people, similar to pulling a rug out from underneath them. In younger adults, this caused a fast automatic reaction controlled by the brainstem, the part of the brain that handles basic body functions. When the challenge was stronger, a second wave of brain and muscle activity occurred.
The new study looked at older adults with and without Parkinson's disease. The results showed that these individuals needed much stronger brain responses and more muscle activity even for small balance problems. According to Ting, recovering balance requires more energy and brain engagement in these groups. When people need more brain activity to stay balanced, they actually have a weaker ability to recover if they start falling.
The team noticed an important difference in muscle behavior. When older adults tightened one muscle to stay stable, the opposite muscle often tightened too. This created extra stiffness that made movements less smooth and led to worse balance performance.
The researchers hope their method could eventually identify people at high risk of falling. By measuring muscle activity during these balance tests, doctors might predict who needs help before a fall happens. This would allow at risk people to participate in balance training programs that could prevent injuries from falls.