Justin Whitten is a graduate student, who is part of The MSU Aging Research Collective in the Department of Health & Human Development at Montana State University, Bozeman. They are engaged in a study from a grant they wrote called Learning from Falling: Perturbation-based Balance Training to Prevent Falls in Older People, which was funded by Montana INBRE  (INBRE stands for Idea Network of Biomedical Research Excellence).

The goal is to improve the health and wellness of older adults through dissemination of research associated with balance and movement and their implications for social and emotional wellness. The benefits that living an active lifestyle have for older adults are well recognized, but there are many barriers to being physically active, with falling – and fear of falling – being a significant one.

Mitigating the risk from falls can allow older adults to be more physically active and live healthier lives. That’s why the focus of this research is primarily on balance and balance recovery.

We spoke with Justin on January 19, 2021 and asked him about the work of The MSU Aging Research Collective and their Perturbation-Based Balance Training Study.

For more information, you can email The MSU Aging Research Collective (balance.msu@gmail.com) or phone them (406- 763-1155).