The effects of aging on the cost of supporting body weight during walking

Graduation Date

2014

Document Type

Thesis

Program

Other

Program

Thesis (M.S.)--Humboldt State University, Kinesiology: Exercise Science, 2014

Committee Chair Name

Justus Ortega

Committee Chair Affiliation

HSU Faculty or Staff

Keywords

Aging, Humboldt State University -- Theses -- Kinesiology, Metabolic cost, Falling

Abstract

Older adults consume 15-20% more metabolic energy per unit mass to walk a given distance and across a range of speeds compared with young adults. Recent evidence suggests that part of the increased cost of walking in older adults is due to greater cost of generating force to support the body's weight. However, the underlying reasons for the increased costs of walking, and more specifically the cost of supporting body weight among older adults, are still unclear. It is well understood that older adults have a higher metabolic cost than young adults and that metabolic cost is correlated with walking energetics and fall risk. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to determine the increased metabolic cost for supporting the body's weight in older adults and its relationship to fear of falling. To address this problem, I collected metabolic, kinematic, and fall risk data for ten healthy young adults (5 male, 5 female; age: 18-35 years) and ten healthy older adults (5 male, 5 female; age: 70-90 years) walking on a treadmill at two speeds with three different levels of weight support. I hypothesized that with increased levels of weight support that metabolic cost will decrease in older adults and will be associated with a reduced fear of falling.

https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/concern/theses/f4752k21r

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