Exercise has been shown to eleviate Parkinson’s symptoms
- Maybe parkisons has more to do with sedentary lifestyle than genetics. Being sedentary results in andormally now levels of dopamine sent to the basal ganglia since it is not necessary. Maybe the basal ganglia deterioriates because its not being used
Neurologists are now recommending daily exercise in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease to stave off symptoms. Scientists induced Parkinson’s in rats by killing the dopamine cells in their basal ganglia, and then forced half of them to run on a treadmill twice a day in the ten days following the “onset” of the disease. Incredibly, the runners’ dopamine levels stayed within normal ranges and their motor skills didn’t deteriorate. In one study on people with Parkinson’s, intensive activity improved motor ability as well as mood, and the positive effects lasted for at least six weeks after they stopped exercising.
References
- Haley, J., John. Hagerman, Eric. (2008). Spark Chapter 6. Attention Deficit (p. 179). New York, NY: Little Brown Spark.