Daily walking habits can mitigate age-related decline in static balance: a longitudinal study among aircraft...

Improving physical balance among older workers is essential for preventing falls in workplace. We aimed to elucidate the age-related decline in one-leg standing time with eyes closed, an indicator of static balance, and mitigating influence of daily walking habits on this decline in Japan. This longitudinal study involved 249 manufacturing workers, including seven females, aged 20-66 years engaged in tasks performed at height in the aircraft and spacecraft machinery industry. The participants underwent a one-leg standing test and annual health checkups through the Kanagawa Health Service Association between 2017 and 2019. The outcome measure was one-leg standing time up to 30 s. The coefficient (β) of one-leg standing time against aging was estimated using two-level multilevel linear regression with random intercepts. We also estimated the β of daily walking habits at least one hour per day. The quadratic spline curve showed an almost linear trend of one-leg standing time with age. The one-leg standing time significantly decreased with age (adjusted β = - 0.22; 95% confidence interval [CI] - 0.31 to - 0.14). Meanwhile, walking habits showed a preventive effect (β = 1.76; 95% CI 0.49 to 3.04). Age-related decline in one-leg standing time may be mitigated by simple daily walking habits.