Active women have a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease
In a study published online May 17 in Neurology, researchers found that women with higher levels of physical activity were less likely to develop Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Led by Berta Portugal, Ph.D., from Université Paris-Saclay, the team investigated the link between different levels of physical activity over time and the prevalence of Parkinson’s disease.
The aim of the study was to rule out the possibility of reverse causality, ie when it is unclear whether a particular factor is the cause or effect of a disease.
The researchers collected data from the E3N cohort study, which observed women who were affiliated with national health insurance from 1990 to 2018.
Results
During the study, the participants provided information about their physical activity in six different questionnaires.
The researchers created a variable called latent physical activity (LPA) to account for changes in the questions across the different surveys.
Among 1,196 cases and 23,879 controls, the researchers found that LPA was significantly lower in the cases (women who developed Parkinson’s) compared to the controls throughout the study.
This included 29 years prior to PD diagnosis. Notably, the difference in LPA between the two groups began to widen about 10 years before diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease.
In a more comprehensive analysis of 95,354 women who were free of Parkinson’s in 2000, researchers found that 1,074 women would develop Parkinson’s over the next 17.2 years.
The data showed that as LPA increased, the incidence of Parkinson’s decreased.
Women in the top quartile for physical activity had a 25% reduced risk of developing Parkinson’s compared to women in the bottom quartile. The results remained valid even with longer follow-up periods.
implications
These results suggest that physical exercise programs could help reduce the risk of Parkinson’s disease.
However, it is important to note that several authors of the study disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.
While further research is needed to validate these results, the study offers a promising outlook for prevention strategies against Parkinson’s disease.
It underscores the importance of maintaining regular physical activity, not only for overall health, but also as a potential measure to reduce the risk of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s.
If you are interested in Parkinson’s disease, please read studies about it Vitamin E, which may help prevent Parkinson’s diseaseAnd Vitamin D could benefit people with Parkinson’s disease.
For more information on brain health, see recent studies on new ways to treat Parkinson’s disease and the results showing that COVID-19 may be linked to Parkinson’s disease.
The study was published in neurology.
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