In order to sense motion and have normal balance, your body uses three overlapping systems, called the balance triad. The inner ears are critical to sensing motion; the eyes and depth perception help locate you in space, and your body, arms and legs feel the floor and your surroundings to help orient you. If any one of these three systems is impaired, you will start to feel off balance. If two out of three of these systems don’t work properly, your risk of falling will greatly increase, and if all three are impaired, you might not be able to walk at all. Multisensory imbalance occurs when two or three of these systems are not functioning fully. As we age we are likely to accumulate small problems in each of these areas, and that eventually results in poor balance. Most older people accordingly suffer from some degree of multisensory imbalance.
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