The National Institutes of Health estimate that 14.8 percent of American adults (about 33 million people) had a balance or dizziness issue in the last year.
Balance is so much a part of daily life that we can take its benefits for granted. Staying upright prevents injury, allows for walking and driving, provides access to daily living activities and allows socialization in public spaces. In short, it’s one of the vital senses, which is why deterioration in the ability to remain upright can be so devastating. Good balance is defined as the ability to walk without staggering, get up from a chair without falling, climb stairs without issues and bending over without falling.
Problems with balance range from simple dizziness and lightheadedness to an inability to maintain enough balance to navigate the world safely. When issues with balance occur, they are typically signs of major medical issues and can indicate problems with blood and heart vessels, muscles, bones, joints, the inner ear, vision, hearing, or the central nervous system.
Types of Balance Issues
A number of balance-related conditions may be at work when someone is constantly klutzy. Vertigo is a general definition for a condition that causes people to feel like they are in motion or experience a sense of spinning. Some potential causes of vertigo: