Health

Dementia patients play adapted form of cricket to boost health


Dementia patients are giving England’s Ashes stars a run for their ­money – playing an ­adapted form of cricket to boost their health and happiness.

Clock cricket – a seated ­version of the summer game – is being introduced to care homes around the country.

The initiative is being backed by the Alzheimer’s Society, which is campaigning to make exercise more accessible for people with dementia, to reduce isolation and keep them physically strong.

Dementia – an umbrella term for declining brain function – is a growing health problem for the UK, with the number of sufferers estimated to rise from 850,000 to more than a million by 2025.

Richard Hill MBE, Disability Cricket Development Manager for the England Cricket Board, supports dementia sufferer Stuart Abercrombie (70)

 

It became the leading cause of death in the UK in 2017, ­overtaking heart disease. Currently, 40,000 people under 65 live with the condition.

Alzheimer’s Society  chief executive Jeremy Hughes says: “Keeping active can reduce your chances of ­developing dementia, but evidence suggests it can also slow the ­progression of ­dementia, improving memory and slowing mental decline.

“Working out regularly improves the heart and bone health of people with dementia, along with flexibility, balance and strength, reducing the risk of falls and helping with the ability to dress, clean and cook.”

The game of clock cricket is generally played indoors, making it suitable for any care setting

 

Clock cricket was invented by England Cricket Board disability support officer Richard Hill as a way to broaden grassroots ­involvement in the game, ­particularly for those with ­disabilities. Players sit in a circle and take turns to bat and bowl, going around like a clock.

The game is generally played indoors, making it suitable for any care setting. It also uses a sponge bat, and ball with a rattle in it to make it easier to track.

Richard, who is a part-time wheelchair user, based clock cricket on a game he played with his own brothers as a boy.

He says: “I loved sport as a child but due to my disability, when fatigue set in it was all-consuming.

So we came up with this version of cricket that could be played with some scrunched-up tin foil as a ball.”

He introduced clock cricket to a care home near his home in Hertfordshire four years ago and now 75 in the county deliver regular sessions.

He is also working with eight other county cricket boards to try to expand the game.

Earlier this year Richard was awarded an MBE for services to disabled sports.

Earlier this year, Richard, pictured seated behind Dementia sufferer Ruby Carter (74), was awarded an MBE for services to disabled sports

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He says: “I’d love to see this spread. There is no reason why people with dementia shouldn’t still enjoy the benefits of sport.

“It’s common sense that if you get more people being active, there will be fewer people ending up in hospital and less pressure on the NHS.

The difference you see in ­people who take part regularly is just astonishing.”

The Alzheimer’s Society has launched a guide for sports clubs and leisure providers to help them make activities more dementia-friendly.

Jeremy Hughes adds: “Everyone should be able to keep up an active lifestyle if they choose. Any form of physical activity is really beneficial for physical and mental health, increasing quality of life.”

The Alzheimer’s Society has tips and advice on how people with dementia can stay active .





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