[ZucchiniFlower]

We are not mice, but exercise appears to be very important. Keep moving!


Walking May Delay Parkinson's - Korean Researchers

A local research team has discovered that an hour of brisk walking a day could help delay the onset of Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's is a degenerative disorder in which an insufficient amount of dopamine in the brain leads to chronic shaking or muscle rigidity.

A team headed by Kim Chang-Ju from the department of physiology at Kyung Hee University's College of Medicine said on Sunday that experiments on Parkinson's-infected mice showed that walking delayed the loss of dopamine-secreting cells.

This indicates that walking may help prevent Parkinson's disease, the team said. The results of the study were published in the Aug. 9 issue of Neuroscience Letters.

The team had six infected mice and six saline liquid-injected mice walk for half an hour every day for two weeks. The mice that exercised were found to have far less dead dopamine-producing cells compared to others with no exercise.

"Just one hour of fast walking a day alone could delay the disease," said Professor Kim.

[GregD]

Being one that has gained some benifit from exercise I can't totally discount this study but I can't completely agree either.
Here is my problem with this study. "Just one hour of fast walking a day alone could delay the disease," said Professor Kim.
Excuse me Professor Kim, I have PD and my gait has been reduced to a shuffle. I can not walk fast enough to get any benifit from walking. Not to mention the hazard of loss of balance and falling.

GregD

[indigogo]

Just a guess, but I think these study results apply more to those who are just diagnosed or marginally symptomatic.

I would hope that it is the exercise in general that helps, not just walking. I am under the impression that vigorous exercise of any sort is proving to be neuro-protective - leaving the door open for those of us with more advanced symptoms to still take advantage of the benefits of exercise.

[vlhperry]

I have found Pilates to be very beneficial. It can be done lying down on a mat on the floor, and it strenghthens the spine and teaches us to move our arms and legs independently from the trunk, putting less pressure on the spine. You can watch TV, they must be done slowly (how much better can it get?) which is ideal for Parkinson patients.

Fast walking may have a positive effect on the entire body, but for Parkinson's patients, our difficulty needs to be addressed by exercise with the intention to improve our flexibility.

Thanks for the post!!
Vicky

[JACKMANA]

Vicky,
If I get down on the floor I can't get back up. I'm trying Tai Chi at present, using a chair for support if needed.
Angela.

[chasmo]

I use a 5 lb dumb bell, and I will be adding a recumbant bike. The best exercise for a Parkie?? The ones you do!!
Exercise is good for us physically and emotionally. Anyone can do some sort of exercises. There are several good books out on exercises taylored for PWP's.

Charlie

[ZucchiniFlower]

Originally Posted by GregD

Being one that has gained some benifit from exercise I can't totally discount this study but I can't completely agree either.
Here is my problem with this study. "Just one hour of fast walking a day alone could delay the disease," said Professor Kim.
Excuse me Professor Kim, I have PD and my gait has been reduced to a shuffle. I can not walk fast enough to get any benifit from walking. Not to mention the hazard of loss of balance and falling.

GregD

Greg, walking slowly has its benefits! I read a study couple of years ago that said that obese people use more calories walking slowly than quickly. I'm not sure how obese the people were, but even moving slowly will lubricate your joints. Don't assume there is no benefit. I think there are many.

In PT, she concentrated on building up my core muscles.

[olsen]

posted this earler--thought it applicable to this discussion:

Healthwatch- Parkinson's Treatment
Posted: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 at 4:16 PM

BACKGROUND: According to neuroscientist Jay Alberts, Ph.D., of the Cleveland Clinic, past animal studies have shown great benefits for exercise in terms of improving Parkinson's disease function. But these positive results haven't been replicated in human studies. Dr. Alberts says, "A lot of human studies haven't shown significant improvements in motor function using the various human interventions, such as weight training or other types of exercise training." But the animal studies used a paradigm called "forced exercise" -- where the animal is forced to exercise at a rate that's faster than its voluntary rate. After taking a group bike ride across Iowa in 2003, Dr. Alberts realized the concept of forced exercise may be the key to bridging the gap between the positive animal studies and the inconclusive human ones.

FORCED EXERCISE: During the Iowa bike ride, Dr. Alberts rode on a tandem bike with a person who had Parkinson's. The patient was forced to pedal much faster than she would have normally -- between 80 RPMs and 90 RPMs as opposed to between 50 RPMs and 60 RPMs. Dr. Alberts explains, "In many ways, this tandem was like a type of forced exercise paradigm that was being used in the tandem studies." Then in 2006, Dr. Alberts rode again with another Parkinson's patient. This patient depended on a surgically implanted device called deep brain stimulation to control his symptoms. If the device is turned off, his symptoms return immediately. Dr. Alberts and the patient went on a 50-mile tandem bike ride with the stimulator turned off, and to their delight, the patient had no symptoms. These observations led to Dr. Alberts testing the theory out clinically.