"There is so much fear about having these discussions, when for most people the problems are going to happen when they haven't had these discussions, " says Amy Berman, a senior program officer for the John A. Hartford Foundation, which focuses on improving health care for older Americans.
It can take a lot of effort to walk for people whose gait isn't smooth, and they are more prone to falls, according to Amy Bastian, director of the Motion Analysis Lab at Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore.