Has someone told you to put a grab bar in the shower to keep from falling?

Trust me, no one really wants to hear this suggestion. It leads to an immediate knee jerk reaction because most people feel like grab bars are only for old people. You may be doing the research and wondering, “should I install a grab bar in the shower?”

Well, you’ve come to the right place to answer that. Welcome to Toilet Talk! We love pretty potties and hate ugly medical equipment. My name is Maria Lindbergh, and I'm an occupational therapist.

I've helped so many people make the best changes to their bathroom to live at home for a lifetime.

And today we're going to talk about a question that people ask a lot: is it necessary for me to have grab bars in the shower?

Keep reading below or watch the video to find out!

Benefits of Grab Bars in the Shower

The short answer is “yes”. Grab bars are so awesome for you!

Grab bars help people of all ages and abilities in the bathroom. They help you safely move around the bathroom and prevent falls. Grab bars allow people to take care of themselves independently in the comfort of their home.

If you’re not convinced that grab bars are a good idea for your bathroom, you’re not alone. I found a study with surprising results on grab bar usage despite compelling evidence!

Study on grab bar use in the shower

Researchers at the University of Ottawa published a study in 2011 in the journal Assistive Technology. (If you’re interested, read the study here.) They wanted to know how people use grab bars when they lost their balance while getting in and out of the shower.

The researchers set up a fake tub shower that had grab bars in different places, like some right along the shower entry, the back wall, and then with no grab bars whatsoever.

The fake tub shower was set on a platform that would move with the push of a button to make people lose their balance on purpose. Don't worry, all of the participants knew they were signing up for this! They wore protective clothing and a harness just in case they actually couldn't regain their balance after the platform moved around.

For ethical reasons, the researchers couldn't have anyone over the age of 60 involved in the experiment because they saw them at a high risk of actually getting injured if they were to lose their balance. So all the participants were between the ages of 50 and 60 years old and there were also some students that were in their twenties.

Everyone in the study was videotaped losing their balance so that the researchers could see if people held onto grab bars to get their balance back or if they didn't reach for grab bars at all.

There were 80 participants who completed a total number of 379 trials where the platform moved and they had to regain their balance. Out of all of the trials, five people fell down, and in those circumstances there were no grab bars present for them to reach out and regain their balance.

In 79% of the trials, people held onto grab bars to recover their balance when stepping in and out of the shower. That means grab bars in the shower helped keep people from falling in a majority of the those trials!

How people felt about grab bars in the shower

When the trials were finished, researchers asked the older adults how the grab bars made them feel when getting in and out of the shower. The older adults said the grab bars were very helpful. They felt more comfortable using grab bars to get in and out of the tub shower, and they felt safer when the grab bars were present.

In fact, most of the participants said that when the experiment was done, they were going to go home and install grab bars at their shower entry.

So the question is: did they do it?

After some time had passed, the researchers followed up with 55 of the 60 older adults. They found out that only five out of the 55 adults had actually gone home and installed grab bars in their shower. It blows my mind that only five people put in grab bars because this study showed that grab bars help most people regain their balance if they happen to lose it.

Here are the reasons why people didn’t install grab bars after the experiment:

• “don’t need them now”

• “too young”

• “only take showers”

• “already installed”

• “thinking about it”

• “make no difference”

• “live in a group setting”

Some of the participants said they would use grab bars when:

• “I need them”

• “I get older”

• “this winter”

• “I renovate the bathroom”

• “I have more problems”

What's also interesting is that 23 of the participants said they would absolutely recommend putting in grab bars in the shower to their colleagues, friends and families.

why people don’t put grab bars in the shower

The researchers guessed that most people didn't go home and put grab bars in their shower because of the stigma that's associated with them. I mean, most people think of grab bars and associate them with nursing homes and hospitals. They think grab bars are for old, frail, and sick people. No one wants their bathroom to remind them of those things.

And I totally get that!

There are so many different looking grab bars today that don't look ugly and blend in with your bathroom aesthetic. I like to think of grab bars as accessories to my bathroom that also provide safety and function.

There are shower shelf grab bars. There are towel rack grab bars. There's toilet paper holders that are grab bars! Anyone can find grab bars in a vast array of shapes, lengths, and colors.

Cost of not putting grab bars in the shower

I also want to throw out another number: The average cost of going to the E.R. in the U.S. after a fall is $30,000. That's not even counting any kind of rehab, outpatient therapy, or home health therapy.

Putting in a grab bar at your shower entry is so much cheaper than $30,000!

With my experience as a health care professional who’s helped countless people rehab after a fall in their bathroom, I am absolutely here to say you've got to think about putting a grab bar in your shower!

I'm not here to scare you into putting a grab bar in your bathroom. I'm just coming from a place of concern. I just want to help out my my fellow humans and help you be safe and do your thing in your bathroom in privacy.

You’re never too young to put grab bars in the shower. Consider making changes in your bathroom before an injury or illness happens at all. That way you can choose what your bathroom will look like instead of using ugly plastic shower chairs and unsafe suction cup grab bars!

What do you think of grab bars in the shower?

Tell me in the comments down below: what do you think of grab bars? Do you have any grab bars in your shower now? If not, how come?

Be honest!

If you have a family member with dementia, here’s a resource that has information on the best types of grab bars to empower that person in the bathroom.

Looking for chic grab bars that match your bathroom aesthetic? Go here to look at Bathroom Solutions for you!

Reference:
Choi, N.G., Choi, B.Y., DiNitto, D.M. et al. Fall-related emergency department visits and hospitalizations among community-dwelling older adults: examination of health problems and injury characteristics. BMC Geriatr 19, 303 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-019-1329-2

Paulette Guitard PhD OT Reg (Ont.) OT(c), Heidi Sveistrup PhD, Nancy Edwards RN PhD & Donna Lockett PhD (2011) Use of Different Bath Grab Bar Configurations Following a Balance Perturbation, Assistive Technology, 23:4, 205-215, DOI: 10.1080/10400435.2011.614674

(Pssssttttt . . . did you know we have an awesome online course for people who have a hard time wiping after using the toilet? It’s an awkward topic that you can learn how to solve in the comfort and privacy of your own home! Learn more about the course HERE!)