If you’re a woman, do this to lower your risk of Parkinson’s disease

Studies have already confirmed that exercise can help men prevent Parkinson’s disease or deal with the symptoms. And, now, a recent analysis of almost 30 years of health data indicates that the advice is good for women, as well.

Women who exercise regularly are more likely to avoid Parkinson’s disease, according to a recent meta-analysis by European researchers. The research, published in July in the journal Neurology, looked at the medical history of about 100,000 French women between 1990 and 2018 to see what effect physical exercise – walking, cycling, sports, even housecleaning – had on the incidence of Parkinson’s. Women in the study who exercised the most – about 30 minutes, five days a week – had a 25 percent lower chance of developing Parkinson’s than those who moved their bodies the least.

This is the first large study to confirm exercise helps women avoid Parkinson’s, says Emilio Melchionna, MD, FAAN, a neurologist with Neurologists of Cape Cod in Hyannis.

“There was a big meta-analysis of physical activity delaying or decreasing the incidence of Parkinson’s disease, but when they separated them out, the men were statistically significant and the women were not,” Dr. Melchionna said. “Probably they didn’t have enough women in the study.”

The recent analysis, however, included a cohort of French women working in education who have been studied through a national insurance program since 1990. They were asked to answer questionnaires about physical exercise, and that was correlated with the incidence of Parkinson’s.

“It’s a powerful study,” he said. “This machine of the body we have just does better with exercise.”

Gender and Age

Parkinson’s is a progressive neurological disorder that causes unintended or uncontrollable movements, such as shaking, stiffness, and difficulty with balance and coordination, according to the National Institutes of Health. It affects men twice more often than women, but women have a higher mortality rate and faster progression of the disease, according to a 2019 review by Italian researchers published in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease.

Besides gender, the biggest risk factor for Parkinson’s is age – most patients are diagnosed after 60, according to the NIH. However, it can strike younger people – actor Michael J. Fox, who has become a well-known proponent for Parkinson’s research, was diagnosed at 29. Head trauma and exposure to environmental toxins may also be factors, according to the NIH.

It’s not clear why women seem to be less likely to get Parkinson’s, Dr. Melchionna said. But bias by clinicians in treating women may affect when women are diagnosed, he said. Doctors, for example, may be less likely to consider symptoms like depression, loss of smell, or constipation as precursors to Parkinson’s in women, he says.

But now it turns out that exercise is a “modifiable” risk factor for both men and women when it comes to Parkinson’s, similar to how quitting smoking or seeking treatment for high blood pressure can prevent coronary disease, he said.

Local Programs

Exercise has also been shown to ease Parkinson’s symptoms, Dr. Melchionna added.

“When people do have Parkinson's, even with a walker or a wheelchair, you send them to physical therapy, maybe for a fall, and they go for two months every other day or five days a week. In a week, they always do better,” he said.

There are some local exercise programs specifically for Parkinson’s patients, such as the YMCA Cape Cod’s Pedaling for Parkinson’s, a spin class for patients and caregivers and Rock Steady Boxing, offered at some gyms and rehabilitation centers. Dance for PD, an international program, offers free classes online and has a digital library of classes.

But anyone can get in the habit of taking the stairs rather than the elevator, parking the car in the most distant spot, or getting into a regular walking routine, Dr. Melchionna said.

“It’s just so hard to do that 30 years before you’re old, for the reason of protecting yourself. But I think it’s people who exercise, generally, they do better.”