Blog

• posted: Aug. 07, 2022
• ADL,  Grip strength,  disability,  functional limitations,  JAMA,  poor muscle strength,  hand strength

I remember as a young man, my dad telling the importance of having a strong but firm handshake and I've continued that through my entire career. With that idea in mind, I never truly knew the value and importance of a good grip not only as a young man, but as we age and get into the golden years. The importance of having a good grip for holding on and lifting things, but for simple and basic activities like opening a jar, tearing open a bag of chips or maybe holding onto a bag of mulch as you carry from the car to the flower bed. These abilities may seem nominal basic activities do you show the importance of having a strong grip at a young and older age. I was reading an article from the Journal of the American Medical Association (1999), that stated that in an older person, decreased muscle strength predisposes a person to functional limitations in activities of daily living and can cause disability. We all know that a simple minimum level of strength is needed to perform a basic task. When your strength is much higher than the minimum level, you've got a little bit more in your strength tank to do what is necessary. This reserve capacity as they call it, serves as a safety margin that presents and prevents functional limitations from developing like deconditioning, possibility for an injury or just not being able to do the activity. Read More