Many adults have experienced dizziness. It can happen after standing up too quickly, after riding a roller coaster, after taking medication, or during a migraine. Many body systems, including your muscles, bones, joints, eyes, and inner ear, must work properly to keep your balance. When these systems don’t work properly, you can have balance problems.
Why does dizziness affect older adults?
As you get older, you’re at higher risk for a number of conditions, including dizziness. This is because dizziness is a symptom of other health conditions that are common in older age.
Some possible reasons include:
- Changes in blood pressure: As you get older, your heart becomes less efficient at pumping blood throughout your body. If you stand up too quickly, your blood pressure can suddenly drop. If changes in blood pressure are causing your dizziness, it shouldn’t last more than a few minutes. Once your blood pressure returns to normal, your dizziness should go away.
- Poor circulation: When your body pumps less blood through your veins, less oxygen is flowing through your body. When your brain and inner ears have less oxygen, you may feel dizzy.
- Neurological conditions: Disorders like Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis cause changes in your body that lead to dizziness. In this case, your doctor will try to diagnose and treat your overall health condition in hopes of eliminating your dizziness.
- Medications: Make sure you read the labels on any medications you take. Dizziness is often a side effect of medications like anticonvulsants, antidepressants, sedatives, and tranquilizers. If you take medication to lower your blood pressure, this can also cause dizziness if your blood pressure drops too low.
- Anxiety Disorders: As you get older, you may develop anxiety when completing certain activities or even when leaving your home. When faced with a situation that triggers anxiety, you may experience a panic attack, which often includes dizziness.
- Low iron levels: Iron helps your body produce red blood cells. If you have an iron deficiency – often called anemia – you may experience dizziness due to low platelets. If this condition is the cause of your dizziness, you may also feel weak and look pale.
- Low blood sugar: If you have diabetes that is controlled with insulin, dizziness occurs when your blood sugar drops suddenly. You may also sweat or suddenly feel anxious.
There are many home remedies that can help reduce dizziness in older adults, including:
- Walking with a cane and avoiding sudden movements
- Protecting their living space from the risk of falling by cleaning, removing tangled rugs and electrical cords, and adding non-slip mats to the bathroom
- Avoiding caffeine, tobacco, alcohol, and excess salt
- Eating a healthy, balanced diet – including staying hydrated to avoid dizziness due to dehydration
Potentially reducing the dose of medications that have dizziness as a side effect (with your doctor’s approval)
