Balancing on one leg may be useful health test in later life, research suggests

Balancing on one leg may be useful health test in later life, research suggests

Balance tends to be well preserved until the sixth decade of life, when it starts to wane relatively rapidly. Photograph: Getty Images

If you have difficulty standing on one leg, it could be a sign of something more serious than overdoing it at the office summer drinks party. Middle-aged and elderly people who cannot balance on one leg for 10 seconds are almost twice as likely to die within 10 years than those who can, research suggests.

How well a person can balance can offer an insight into their health. Previous research, for instance, indicates that an inability to balance on one leg is linked to a greater risk of stroke. People with poor balance have also been found to perform worse in tests of mental decline, suggesting a link with dementia.