Dancing for Senior Health
As we celebrate our annual Music Festival at Parc Provence, our residents feel like dancing! Dancing has many proven health benefits for seniors. That’s why we frequently incorporate this feel-good activity as part of our music therapy programs and social events.
What’s so Healthy About Dancing?
Studies have proven that dancing can benefit senior health in a number of ways. Reasons to dance include the following:
- Dancing can defend against dementia. A 21-year study led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine showed that older adults who danced on a regular basis exhibited a 76 percent reduced chance of developing dementia compared to other leisure activities. Why does dancing do so much for the brain? Experts think the combination of cardiovascular exercise with split-second decision making required in dancing may cause the brain to produce new neural networks under taxing conditions. This may be very good for the brain. The fact that the activity is set to music may help, as well, because music has been proven to stimulate the entire brain.
- Mood can be elevated by dance. Researchers have found that after just two weeks of participation in dance programs, men and women with mood disorders showed noticeably less symptoms of depressions, anxiety, stress, and insomnia.
- Dance gets the heart pumping and increases strength. Learning a new dance provides cardiovascular benefits because it increases your heart rate and gets your blood circulating around the body. In addition, it can help with balance and strength which are both important factors in fall prevention.
- Movements can be adapted to allow almost anyone to participate. Age and health issues shouldn’t prevent anyone from moving to the music. People with arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, Alzheimer’s and more can all participate. There is no shame in chair dancing or simply swaying to the beat. There is very little health risk to dancing, but consult a medical professional if you have concerns about participation for you or a loved one.
Visit Parc Provence During Our 2017 Music Festival
Our 2017 Music Festival is currently underway at Parc Provence. Visit us all month long to see how music therapy – including dancing, singing, musical theater, and more – benefit our entire community. Click here for a schedule of events.
Parc Provence is the premier assisted living and memory care community in the St. Louis area. Contact us today to learn more about our innovated programs and compassionate care. We’d love to schedule your personal tour.
