09 413 5312
Elevate Chiropractic
  • Home
  • Services
    • Acute Pain & Injury Care
    • Good Posture
  • About Us
  • Blog
    • FAQs
  • Contact Us

Could your grip strength be more important than blood pressure?

4/5/2016

1 Comment

 
In a previous blog post I discussed some research that suggested your walking speed could be an effective predictor of your life expectancy.  In fact, in the study, it was suggested that for every 0.1 meters per second faster the participants walked, their risk of dying in the next decade reduced by 12%, amazing (You can read the full blog here).  It was thought that how well you walk, may be an indicator of overall health and well being.  There have been several studies that have come out that suggest grip strength is another dependable predictor of overall health and wellness.  You are probably thinking, how would grip strength predict my health and wellness?  Well, continue reading to find out.
Several studies have associated grip strength with:
  • Reduced cardiovascular risk: Hand Grip Strength Significantly Predicts Cardiovascular Event Risk in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes.
  • Reduced complications from surgery: Hand-grip strength is a simple and effective outcome predictor in esophageal cancer following esophagectomy with reconstruction: a prospective study.
  • Reduced length of hospital Stays: Is grip strength associated with length of stay in hospitalized older patients admitted for rehabilitation? Findings from the Southampton grip strength study.
  • All-cause Mortality: Grip strength predicts cause-specific mortality in middle-aged and elderly persons.

In another big study called The PURE Study, that tracked over 150,000 subjects over 17 different countries, found that each 11 pound decrease in grip strength over the course of the study was linked to:
  • A 16% higher risk of dying from any cause
  • A 17% higher risk of dying from heart disease
  • A 9% higher risk of stroke
  • A 7% higher risk of heart attack

I don’t know about you, but those stats are very interesting.  What was even better was that they concluded:
  • “Grip strength was a stronger predictor of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality than systolic blood pressure.”

As you have just read, these studies link good grip strength with lots of positive benefits.  It is important to remember though that it is not the grip strength itself that is the proposed mechanism for improving health outcomes, but what good grip strength may suggest.  It is thought that grip strength is a good indicator of overall vitality and robustness. 

What does this mean?  Well people who are generally fit and active, those who eat well and exercise regularly etc, are going be “healthier” and are more likely going to have better grip strength than people who don’t do those things.  This is similar to the walking example I mentioned from an older blog post.  Those who walk better and more freely are generally going to be in better shape and therefore “health”, than those who walk slowly and with difficulty.

Exercise is one of the key things here in regards to grip strength. If you are exercising regularly and lifting weights, you will more than likely have better grip strength than if you didn’t.  It is a natural side effect. Good exercise can have all sorts of added benefits as well.  I have written numerous blog posts on these.  If you are interested, make sure you read some of them.  Simply click on the "exercise" category to the right to find them.

What to make of this research
I love finding information like this.  It is no longer okay to just check your blood pressure to see how “healthy” you are. I am not saying to never do it, but how about look at the bigger picture, and overall function.  Think about, how well can you move.  Can you walk briskly without trouble, can you bend and squat down without trouble, how is your grip strength?  If you are finding trouble with these tests, maybe you should look into having them assessed and improving them.  A great simple test to try is the Sitting-Rising Test (SRT), you can see it here in a previous post of mine. 

If you think about these last few questions and find a few problems, make sure you give me or your health professional a call to see if we can help get you and your health back on the right track.

References
  • http://movement-as-medicine.com/is-your-grip-strength-more-important-than-your-blood-pressure/
1 Comment
Elizabeth Miller-Lewis
5/5/2016 03:40:12 am

With regard to the Sit-stand test - does the testing take into account if you have an injury? For example, an unreconstructed ACL from 30 years ago ;-)

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Dr Craig Buscomb

    Bringing you news, research and advice on health, wellness, exercise and chiropractic care to help take your health to the next level

    Picture

    Archives

    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014

    Categories

    All
    6 Week Challenge
    Air Purifier
    Athritis
    Back Brace
    Back Pain
    Balance
    Barefoot
    Blood Pressure
    Body Hacks
    Brain Development
    Brain Function
    Breathing
    Cervicogenic Headaches
    Children
    Chiropractic Care
    Chiropractic Research
    Clicking Joints
    Computer Setup
    Concussion
    Core Exercise
    Crawling
    Cryotherapy
    Diaphragmatic Breathing
    Disc Herniation
    Disc Injury
    Dizziness
    Dr Craig Buscomb
    Elderly
    Elevate Chiropractic Clinic
    Ergonomics
    Exercise
    Eyesight
    Eyestrain
    Fall Risk
    FAQs
    Fatigue
    Feet
    Fidgeting
    Flexibility
    Foam Roller
    Foot Function
    Foot Pain
    Free Spine Checks
    Functional Movement
    Gardening
    Gift Ideas
    Goals
    Grip Strength
    Grounding
    Habits
    Hanging
    Headaches
    Headbanging
    Health
    Heat Therapy
    Hip Hinge
    Hip-Hinge
    Hip Test
    Hugging
    Hypermobility
    Ice
    Joint Cracking
    Kneeling
    Knee Pain
    Leg Pain
    Lifting
    Lifting Technique
    Low Back Pain
    Lower Back Pain
    Massage
    Massage Ball
    Meditation
    Migraine
    Mirgrane
    Mobility
    Movement
    Music
    Myofascial Release
    NEAT
    Neck Pain
    Neuroplasticity
    New Year's Resolutions
    Nocebo Affect
    Non-Exercise Movement
    Novelty
    Osteoporosis
    Overweight
    Pediatric Care
    Physical Activity
    Pillows
    Piriformis Syndrome
    Placebo Effect
    Plants
    Posture
    Power Poses
    Rehabilitation
    RICE
    Risk Of Dying
    Schoolbag
    Sciatica
    Sciatic Nerve
    Seniors
    Shoulder
    Shoulder Pain
    Sickness
    Sitting
    Sitting Positions
    Sleep
    Sleeping
    Soft Tissue Release
    Sport
    Sports Performance
    Stability
    Static Back Position
    Stress
    Stretches
    Stretching
    Studying
    Surgery
    Teenagers
    Tension Headaches
    Testimonials
    Text Neck
    Tongue Positions
    TV
    Upper Back Pain
    Upper Cross Syndrome
    Vertigo
    Walking
    Warning Signs
    Water
    Weightloss
    What To Expect
    Work Breaks
    Yoga

    RSS Feed

    Contact Us
    Services
    About Us
    It's what you do everyday that impacts your health, not what you do sometimes.

Let us keep you updated with our newsletter

Quick Links

Home
Services
About Us
Blog
Contact Us
Privacy and Confidentiality

Contact Us

Shop 1, 10 Greenhithe Road
Greenhithe, Auckland
P: 09 413 5312
M: 027 975 4104
E: drcraig@elevatechiropractic.co.nz
Submit once, a confirmation email will be sent to you.
© Elevate Chiropractic  2014 | Website developed by Outbox Ltd