Sleeping immediately after eating also increases the risk of silent reflux, which irritates structures near nerves involved in balance.
What to do
Have dinner earlier whenever you can.
Allow at least 2 hours between dinner and bedtime.
If you feel very sleepy after eating, take a short nap sitting down, not lying down.
Mistake 6: Sitting for hours without moving your neck or changing your gaze
“Doctor, I hardly do anything, how am I going to get dizzy?”
Precisely for that reason.
After the age of 60, the body tolerates very poorly long periods of immobility, especially with the neck slightly tilted forward (television, cell phone, reading).
What’s the matter?
The neck muscles tighten like a hard rope.
Blood flow to the brain is reduced.
Position sensors in the neck send confusing signals to the balance system.
Doña Marta described her feeling like this: “It’s as if I had a brick inside my head.”
He spent more than 6 hours a day in the same armchair, with his neck forward.
What to do
Every 30–40 minutes, get up for at least 2 minutes.
Move your shoulders back, gently turn your neck from side to side, and look into the distance through the window.
Avoid spending hours looking down (cell phone, tissue, book). Raise whatever you’re using to eye level.
Mistake 5: Almost not drinking water and living on coffee and infusions
Many tell me:
“Doctor, I’m not dehydrated, I drink coffee all day.”
The problem is that the body doesn’t count coffee as water.
After 60:
we have less thirst,
the blood becomes a little thicker when there is a lack of water,
The pressure becomes unstable.
Result: dizziness when getting up, cloudy vision, weak steps.
Excess coffee, strong tea or diuretic infusions worsens dehydration and, if you also take blood pressure medication or diuretics, dizziness multiplies.
What to do
Keep to a simple goal: 6–8 glasses of water a day, spread out.
For each cup of coffee or tea, try adding a glass of water.
Have a small bottle in sight: what you see, you drink.
If you get up a lot at night to go to the bathroom, concentrate most of the water in the morning and afternoon.
Mistake 4: Breathing shallowly and quickly all day
You don’t have to feel “short of breath” to breathe badly.
When you’re focused, worried, or sitting for a long time:
You breathe short, from the top of your chest,
the diaphragm hardly moves,
the neck and shoulders do a job that does not correspond to them.
This generates:
reduced cerebral oxygenation,
more cervical tension,
A feeling of mental cloud and a heavy head.
Balance uses the breath as an internal anchor.
If you breathe heavily and shallowly, the brain interprets disorder and instability.
Simple exercise
Several times a day, especially before getting out of bed or when starting a walk:
Inhale through your nose for 3 seconds.
Hold the air for 1 second.
Exhale slowly through your mouth for 4 seconds.
Repeat 3 to 5 times.
In a few minutes many patients feel that “the head clears”.
Mistake 3: Staying in the same pose for too long
It’s not just “being sedentary,” it’s getting frozen in one posture:
Sitting for a long time,
lying still without moving,
even standing always on the same leg.
When that happens:
traffic slows down,
postural muscles become fatigued,
the neck and lower back tighten,
Receptors that warn of pressure changes become clumsy.
This is the typical case of:
“I got up from the couch and for a second everything went away.”
What to do
Every 30–40 minutes he changes his position, even if it’s just a little.
If you’re sitting, stand up and move your arms and legs.
If you’re standing, walk a few steps or put your weight on your other leg.
Use “triggers”: Every time you finish a chapter, a call, or a message, move.
They are “micro-movements”, but for your circulation and balance they are huge.
Mistake 2: Starting your day with a breakfast full of quick sugars
White bread with jam, sweet cookies, industrial juices, puffed cereals…
They look light, but they cause a blood sugar roller coaster:
Sudden rise in glucose.
Strong insulin discharge.
Rapid sugar drop.
The brain, which is just “waking up,” gets a burst of energy first, and then a crash.
That feels like:
dizziness between breakfast and mid-morning,
blurred vision,
Feeling of an empty or “empty” head.
After the age of 60 the response to glucose is slower and irregular, so these peaks affect even more.
What to do
Swap out fast sugars for protein + fiber + healthy fat.
Examples:
natural yogurt with seeds and whole fruit,
whole wheat bread with avocado/avocado and egg,
Cooked oatmeal with nuts.
If you like something sweet, make it after you have eaten protein and not as the only basis for breakfast.
The goal is to give the brain stable energy, not sugar bursts.
Mistake 1: Not including foods that help stabilize blood pressure
This is the most common mistake and one of the most ignored.
Many dizziness when getting up, vision that “turns off” for an instant or feeling that the floor is tilting are due to a blood pressure that is too fragile, which rises and falls easily.
This occurs when the diet is poor in:
Potassium (banana, spinach, potato, legumes, fresh fruits).
Magnesium (oats, pure cocoa, seeds, nuts).
Natural sodium in adequate amounts (homemade broths, unprocessed foods), especially if you sweat a lot or take diuretics.
It’s not about eating more processed salt, but about giving the body the right minerals so that the blood vessels stay firm and the flow to the brain is stable.
What to do
Ensure every day, even in small portions:
1 fruit rich in potassium (banana, orange, melon, etc.).
1 serving of leafy greens.
A seed or nut.
Homemade broths if your doctor hasn’t prescribed a strict salt-free diet.
Talk to your doctor if you’re already taking blood pressure medication: Dietary changes should be coordinated with your doctor.
When these foods appear constantly, the pressure responds better and those brief dizziness usually decrease.
How to start changing today
You don’t have to correct the 7 errors at once. You can:
Choose one or two that you recognize in your routine.
Work them for 2–3 weeks.
Then move on to the next one.
For example:
This week: drink more water and don’t go to bed right after dinner.
The next one: improve breakfast and get up every 30–40 minutes.
Small adjustments, repeated every day, are what really change the way you feel when you get up and walk.
Important Notice
This article is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for consultation with your doctor, neurologist, or cardiologist.
If your dizziness is severe, comes on suddenly, is accompanied by double vision, slurred speech, chest pain, weakness on one side of the body or other worrisome symptoms, seek emergency medical attention.
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