Studies have shown that, on average, men tend to be affected earlier in life by PD and suffer a more severe course of illness than women. Furthermore, the symptoms of this condition seem to vary according to the sex of the patient. Another key aspect to be noted, Estrogen plays a role in delaying or preventing age-related cognitive decline and memory loss.
An article on, Dance away the pain: Parkinson’s patients improve mobility through exercise has brought to notice that, some patients with Parkinson’s disease are finding relief from their debilitating symptoms and maintaining their quality of life — by dancing.
Parkinson Disease: What is it?
Parkinson Disease is a degenerative neurological condition caused by the loss of cells that produce dopamine deep inside the brain. It’s a degenerative neurological condition caused by the loss of cells that produce dopamine deep inside the brain. Dopamine is message-carrying chemical (or neurotransmitter) that is associated with movement. The loss of these cells, and the resulting depletion of dopamine, leads to a range of motor symptoms, including tremor, rigidity, slowed movement, stiff limbs, impaired balance and gait difficulties.
It has been reported that, the disease affects as many as 1 million Americans (Parkinson’s Disease Foundation.).
Music & Dance: Lending a Healing touch
The music used for dance, and the movements of a dance, can provide an external go signal to helps people to overcome that lack of signal, that lack of cue. The dance form included are Tango, Waltz/Foxtrot.
As PD patients don’t make enough dopamine, exercise helps them make more of what they’ve got.
If you think about dance, it’s not just exercise. It’s cued by music, so there’s a rhythmic cue. There’s usually a narrative, a story that goes behind, so there’s a linguistic level to it. There’s also an emotional level — the joy of just dancing — and if you’re getting into a certain character, there’s an emotional value there.
So, when you’re thinking of dance, you’re not just thinking of exercise, you’re thinking of movement along with some type of dramatic expression. The most noticeable aspects were how it supported participants’ confidence, as well as improving their bodily awareness.
The best thing about the whole effort is it feels great when the patients go for the class and feel good about themselves.
