We have talked previously about how our eating habits affect us and about our blood sugar suspicions and so on. And it did seem to have a rather strong effect on some of us, myself included. Eat, blood sugar gets screwy, then we do too. Simple, right? Oh, you know better by now

Meet "postprandial hypotension" (PPH) and it may be a big deal for you, if not now then in the future. Short and simple- when one eats a normal system shunts blood to the GI tract and compensates by adjusting the blood pressure. But in PD a lot of us have damaged control circuits that result in a dip in BP as blood flows to the GI tract after a meal. The drop is not much (10 to 20 systolic) but the impact on PD symptoms is dramatic. In my own case (and for once this seems fairly typical) it brings on bloating, brain fog, gait problems/freezing, danger of falling, etc. It is more likely to happen if you are HYPERtensive than if you are normal. Not clear what it does if you are HYPOtensive.

Just as it mimics blood sugar problems, the proper dietary change is to eat small, frequent, high protein meals. So, if you are freezing or careening around the room, try looking at your eating patterns.

This is not a small matter. Some research indicates that PPH is THE single best indicator in nursing homes of how long individuals are likely to live. It is also a big factor in some of PD's nastier cousins like MSA.