The Latest Dirt - July 2024

Gardening for all Ages

By Laura Brainin-Rodriguez

As we age, we may develop injuries due to overuse or mishaps. This can affect our balance, coordination, and/or eyesight, as well as our joints. We will discuss the body mechanics, tools, and equipment we can use to continue making gardening a vital part of our lives.

Eye Protection—As we age, our vision changes, which may require us to wear glasses. As we become both near and farsighted, we use glasses that can affect our depth perception. This can contribute to trips and falls as we navigate the varied surfaces in gardens.

Protecting our eyes from branches, dust, and pollen is also important. One way to do this with glasses is to wear over-the-glasses protection.

Loss of grip strength and/or arthritis—Arthritis results in degenerative changes to our joint structures, which lead to decreased range of motion and often pain.

The joints typically affected include the neck, shoulders, back, hips, knees and ankles. This can impact mobility and our ability to bend, squat, and/or reach for things above or below us. For more information on how to address this, check out the resources at the end of this article.

Hydration—Bodies are about 70% water found in blood, muscles, vital organs and brain. Water is lost through sweat, respiration, urine, and stool. Blood brings oxygen and nutrients to tissues and takes waste products and CO2 away. Exercise generates heat in our muscles and core. Blood brings this to the skin’s surface, causing us to sweat. As sweat evaporates, it cools us off. Thirst is a poor indicator of hydration status, as our sense of thirst is blunted as we age.

Drinking enough water for work in the heat prevents dehydration, heat illness and reduced performance. A 1-2% or more loss of body weight will affect physical, hand-eye coordination, psychomotor, and cognitive performance.

Dehydration symptoms:

• Thirst
• Dark urine
• Dizziness or fainting
• Muscle cramps or weakness
• Constipation and/or less frequent urination
• Dry skin or loss of elasticity
• Dry mouth
• Fatigue
• Headache
• Confusion
• and Rapid Heart Rate

Water losses can be measured by weighing yourself before and after exercise. Every half pound lost equals eight oz of water lost. Under certain environmental conditions, a 10-degree F increase in temperature can raise water requirements at rest by 50-60% and more than four times that while doing light work outdoors.

This is a note about working in typical late spring to mid-fall temperatures in Central Contra County. In sports and farm work, temperatures above 85 degrees are considered hazardous and require accommodation, such as regular rest and hydration breaks.

Preventing Dehydration

Fresh fruits and vegetables are 80-90% water. Soups, juices, liquid dairy, and plant milks help replenish our body stores. Drink water at planned intervals, at least once per hour.
One possible approach recommended for athletes:

• Drink 2-3 cups 2 hours before exercise – you will void this
• Drink 10-12 ounces 10-15 minutes before starting exercise
• Drink 6-10 ounces or more every 30 minutes, depending on sweat rate

Cooler water is absorbed more quickly. To make it more appealing, consider flavoring water with lemon or lime juice and small amounts of fruit juice, cucumbers, or fruit.

Garden in cooler times of the day

Things to keep in mind

Caffeine and alcohol are diuretics, increasing water loss from the body.
Medications: diuretics, NSAIDS and conditions such as Diabetes can also increase fluid losses.
Unless it’s contraindicated for medical reasons, don’t skimp on salt in food if you have a high perspiration rate and are gardening in higher temperatures; otherwise, you risk hyponatremia.
Hyponatremia (too little sodium in the blood) can result from drinking too much water and restricting salt and can lead to:

• vomiting
• headaches
• confusion
• fatigue
• loss of energy
• muscle weakness, cramps, or spasms
• In extreme cases, coma

Dressing for success—As we age, our skin becomes thinner and slower to heal. It is important to avoid abrasions from plants such as roses, berry canes, and thistles, as well as irritants such as poison oak, euphorbias, bedstraw, or other plants.

Choose clothing that protects us from the sun and garden hazards, such as thorns and plant irritants, while allowing our bodies to cool off as needed.
There are many UV-resistant and wicking fabrics you can choose from.
Additionally, we should wear hats that allow our heads to stay cool while shading our faces and eyes from the sun.

Gloves: These should protect against thorns, scratches, and nail injuries.

Warmup: Like any physical activity, preparing our bodies for gardening is a good idea. This includes thinking about the body parts we will use to bend, twist, reach or carry.

It is recommended that you do 5 minutes of a warmup, such as walking around your garden, followed by some gentle stretches. We will share some handouts from UC, with recommendations for stretches and general self-care while gardening.

Maintaining the natural curves of our backs while gardening is essential. Proper alignment is also important to protect our backs.

As we age, our discs become flatter and less able to absorb shocks. It is also important to use larger muscles, like those in our legs, to bend, lift and carry.

These movements should be done slowly and mindfully, honoring your body and your limitations. Following this article, check out the suggested pre-gardening warmup routine.

Working around limitations

• Body Mechanics for weeding, lifting, pruning, digging
  • Engage abdominals before lifting or picking up anything
  • Kneel in a lunge position
  • Squat to lift
  • Prune at eye level – neck alignment.
  • Support your weight using walls, raised beds, wheelbarrows or knees
  • Dig with the proper tool, using lower body muscles and shifting weight from leg to leg.
• Pace your work
  • It’s not a competition. The goal is to live to garden another day
  • Take rest breaks, use these to hydrate, and consider your next tasks.
• Task Rotation to use different parts of the body
  • Change tasks every 25-30 minutes
  • If you are bending forward, pause and stretch in the opposite direction
  • Give small muscles in the hands, wrists, and elbows breaks
• Break uploads and tasks
  • Test loads before lifting
  • Break these up if they are too heavy
  • Better to weed 30 minutes at a time than do it for 3 hours and throw your back out or overload your knees, hands, and/or shoulders
• Get help when needed
  • Some tasks are best delegated to younger and less well-used bodies. If you need to sheet mulch, spread a lot of compost, or weed a large area, get help.

Resources:

1. UC Master Gardener Program Safety Training Manual (11.05.2015) https://ucanr.edu/sites/safety/files/3341.pdf
2. The Lifelong Gardener, Garden with Ease and Joy at any Age – Toni Gattone https://tonigattone.com/the-lifelong-gardener-book/
3. Arthritis and Gardening - http://www.agrability.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Arthritis_Gardening_Web_sm.pdf
4. AgrAbility - The Toolbox: Agricultural Tools, Equipment, Machinery & Buildings for Farmers and Ranchers with Physical Disabilities is a resource that contains assistive technology solutions for farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural workers with disabilities. http://www.agrability.org/toolbox/
5. Gardening Tools and Accessories
   http://www.agrability.org/toolbox/?mode=browse&sub=42#l1_16
6. Arthritis Gardening Tools
   https://www.arthritissupplies.com/arthritis-gardening-tools.html
7. Accessible Gardening: Garden Ergonomics
   https://greenthumbs.cedwvu.org/media/1165/ergonomic.pdf