February 7, 2020

Without completely remodeling your entire home, with just a few simple changes you can ensure the safety of your loved ones. Experts in the senior safety field have offered the following advice, in order to prevent falls at home.

• Tidy up your home. By keeping your home neat and tidy, especially in areas like hallways and staircases, you have automatically created a safer space.

• Repair/remove Hazards. Since many home fixtures can contribute to falls, you should examine your home, looking for hazards such as loose carpets or slippery rugs and repair/replace those items to increase fall prevention.

• Avoid baggy clothes. In order to ensure that your clothing doesn’t bunch up or drag on the floor, you should opt for better-fitting clothes to avoid falls.

• Install grab bars & handrails. These safety devices are beneficial in several areas such as going up and down the stairs, getting on and off the toilet and stepping in and out of the bathtub without falling and injuring yourself.

• Adequate lighting. Another major hazard is having inadequate lighting. By installing brighter light bulb in particular spaces such as stairways and narrow hallways, you can create a home that is more suitable for the elderly.

• Wear shoes. Although socks may be comfortable, they offer a greater risk of slipping. By just wearing shoes or non-slip socks/slippers, you can prevent falls very simply.

• Make it nonslip. When wet, bathtubs and showers, along with kitchen and bathroom floors, can become a hazard. In order to prevent this, one should purchase nonslip mats.

• Live on one level. Even after following the tips for adequate lighting and fixing loose rugs, areas like stairways can still present a significant falling hazard.

• Move carefully. Studies have shown that many elderly people fall just from moving too quickly between positions. In order to prevent this falls, doctors suggest simply taking your time.