New study claims 10-second balance test reveals if you'll die young

Can you do this simple 10-second balancing test? Photo / Getty Images

A simple 10-second balance test for people older than 50 reveals if their chances of dying from any cause will double in the next decade, an Australian study has suggested.

Research conducted by the University of Sydney research showed those who struggled to stand on one leg for 10 seconds were at higher risk of dying early.

The study authors have called for the test to be part of a routine health check for older adults.

Participants were asked to place the front of their free foot on the back of the opposite lower leg while keeping their arms by their sides and their gaze fixed straight ahead.

"The availability of simple, inexpensive, reliable and safe balance assessment tools that could help predict survival would potentially be beneficial to health professionals evaluating and treating older adults," the study said.

The study sampled 1702 participants aged between 51 and 75. Two-thirds of the cohort were men.

According to researchers, roughly one in five people (348) in the group failed the balance test.

Researchers said, in general, those who failed had poorer health, with a higher proportion deemed obese or categorised as having heart disease, high blood pressure and unhealthy blood fat profiles.

The study, which has been peer-reviewed and published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, also revealed Type 2 diabetes was three times as common in people who failed.

Patients who were unable to stand unsupported on one leg for 10 seconds were linked to an 84 per cent increased risk of death from any cause within the next decade.

The proportion of deaths among those who failed the test was significantly higher, researchers said, at 17.5 per cent vs 4.5 per cent.

"Each year an estimated 684,000 individuals die from falls globally, of which over 80 per cent are in low or middle-income countries," the study said.

"While it is known that good levels of balance are relevant for many daily life activities there is considerable evidence that loss of balance is also detrimental for health and that some exercise interventions may improve balance.

"In our 13 years of clinical experience routinely using the 10-s OLS static balance test in adults with a wide age range and diverse clinical conditions, the test has been remarkably safe, well-received by the participants, and importantly, simple to incorporate in our routine practice as it requires less than one or two minutes to be applied."