Effect of Eight Weeks Water Resistance Training with Dark Chocolate Supplementation on the Balance of the Elderly

Introduction: Improving balance in the daily lives of the elderly plays an important role, especially in reducing their risk of falling. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of eight weeks water resistance training with dark chocolate supplementation on the balance of the elderly. Methods: In this study, 38 elderly people with an age range of 73-60 years were randomly divided into four groups. Participants in groups, included water resistance training and water resistance training + dark chocolate, performed water resistance training for eight weeks. In this period, groups of dark chocolate and water resistance training + dark chocolate, consumed 6 pieces of dark chocolate 83%, 5 gr per day, and the control group did not have any training or supplementation. The stork test (flamingo) was used to assess balance. The results of covariance analysis (ANOVA) showed that there was a statistically significant difference between the four groups. Data were evaluated using Excel and SPSS-16 (p≤ 0.05). Results: The adjusted means after eliminating the effect of pre-test scores showed that the water resistance-training group had a higher mean than the other three groups and the weakest scores belonged to the control group. The results of other groups were as followed: experimental group 18.77, chocolate group 16.88, combined group (water resistance training + dark chocolate) 17.24 and control group 9.77. The results of Benferoni test showed that there was a significant difference between the water resistance training group and the control group (p = 0.006). Conclusion: According to the results of this study, it seems that eight weeks of water resistance training and dark chocolate supplementation can improve the balance and quality of life of the elderly.