Informational Articles

Published in Dance/USA Task Force on Dancer Health, 2023 Introduction Dancers are athletes. They undergo the same physical and mental demands as their sport counterparts. Across many genres of sports, cross-training (doing other forms of exercise), has added to the athletes’ strength and fitness levels allowing them to handle the…

Published in Dance Magazine, May 2020 As state governments begin to ease shelter-at-home restrictions and studios slowly start to reopen their doors, dancers likely are experiencing a mix of emotions: There’s excitement about returning to your artistic home and reuniting with your fellow dancers, but also nerves and anxiety about…

Staying at Home Doesn’t Mean Boredom. Or flabby muscles! Dr. Shah tells us how to stay fit while staying at home! Current shelter-in-place orders have created significant struggles for each household. While it is easy to get bogged down with negative thoughts, it is better to focus on the myriad…

Published in 4Dancers Blog Our bones are important because they serve as the foundation on which we are built. Bone is living tissue that contains blood vessels; proteins, including collagen; and cells that are actively maintaining healthy bone. Bone also contains many minerals, the most important of which is calcium.…

Published in TaskForce on Dancer Health Informational Papers Adequate Vitamin D and calcium are crucial to maintain proper bone health. In the last decade, Vitamin D deficiency throughout the world has risen dramatically. 77% of the population in the United States lack adequate levels of Vitamin D. In 2010, a…

Published in 4Dancers Blog If you are anything like me, you are captivated by ballet. You love its grace and its gravity-defying, gentle power. You dream of performing as a prima ballerina. In the years of work it will require to get there, perhaps the single most important milestone you…

Published in Sports Stars, Page 27 Americans love football. It’s no surprise that athletes from the high school level on down are drawn to the game. In 2012, a whopping 4.2 million played football, including more than one million high school students. But popularity comes with a price, and in…

Co-Authored and Published in TaskForce on Dancer Health Informational Papers Concussions can occur in daily activity as well as during any sport or recreational activities – including dance. Concussions can have immediate and long lasting effects on an individual. Therefore, all concussions are considered serious. It is essential that dancers, dance…

Published in Sports Stars When most of us think of ultrasound, we think of examining a baby in the womb. However, in recent years, ultrasound technology has progressed and the images it produces have improved. As a result, trained sports medicine physicians can use it as a replacement for magnetic resonance…

Co-Authored and Published in TaskForce on Dancer Health Informational Papers Dancers can find themselves in a variety of challenging performance situations. During exercise, sweating is usually the primary mechanism of body cooling. The evaporation of sweat from the skin’s surface assists the body in regulating core temperature. If the body…