Delaram Safarpour, MD, MSCE, discusses the role of nutrition in maintaining health, common challenges to healthy eating, and tips to improve diet for people with Parkinson’s. This Expert Q&A is sponsored by Amneal and Kyowa Kirin.
Delaram Safarpour, MD, MSCE, discusses the role of nutrition in maintaining health, common challenges to healthy eating, and tips to improve diet for people with Parkinson’s. This Expert Q&A is sponsored by Amneal and Kyowa Kirin.
Certain foods, such as tart cherries, grapes and walnuts, are rich in naturally occurring melatonin.In one study, people who drank cherry juice experienced improvement in their insomnia symptoms. Try having a last snack of the day that includes these plant based options for sleep support.
Individuals that have a deficiency in calcium can have waking in the middle of the night and interrupted sleep. Some best food sources include sardines, dark leafy greens, green snap peas and okra.
Some top foods include prunes, flaxseeds, sunflower seeds, pistachios, raw garlic and spinach.
This amino acid is converted to the neurotransmitter serotonin and then melatonin. Best sources include (yes turkey!), salmon, apples, pumpkin seeds, broccoli, yogurt and oats.
This mineral is connected to over 300 biochemical reactions in the body including relaxation of muscles and deactivation of adrenaline to support sleep. It is the most commonly deficient mineral in adults. Magnesium is found in dark, green leafy veggies such as kale, spinach, arugula, collard greens, and rainbow chard. Try almonds, bananas or avocados to boost magnesium intake.
Some teas include calming botanicals, such as valerian tea, peppermint tea, passionfruit tea and chamomile tea (which increases glycine, a chemical that relaxes nerves and muscles). Try honey with tea as your new night cap!
While having an alcoholic drink before bed can induce drowsiness and relaxation it ultimately disrupts deep sleep. Also try to avoid caffeine later in the day to help you fall asleep more easily at night.
“You are what you eat”, applies to both your body and mind. For those managing Parkinson’s disease, sleeping disturbances and insomnia are common. Try incorporating these sleep supportive foods for people with Parkinson’s living inspired lives.
Dr. Bethany Tennant is a Naturopathic Physician & Certified Nutrition Specialist and has been involved with BGF since 2012. Dr. Tennant is passionate about neurodegenerative conditions, natural sports medicine and medical nutrition. She sees patients at 2bwell Clinic in Lake Oswego, OR.
@dr.bethanytennant www.drbethanytennant.com
Simple and straightforward, this recipe features healthy salmon that’s packed with omega-3 fatty acids and protein. Serve with quinoa and you’ve got a nutritious, delicious dinner that meets our nutritional recommendations for healthy living with Parkinson’s.
1/2 lb Salmon (4 filets)
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Pepper
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Butter
1/2 Yellow Onion sliced
1/4 cup Maple Syrup
1/4 cup Tamari Sauce
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Season salmon fillets with salt and pepper on top and sides.
Heat olive oil in a large ovenproof or cast iron skillet. Add onion and sauté quickly over med heat until it begins to darken and soften, approximately 4 minutes.
Push onion to one side and add salmon fillets, upside down. Sear 2 minutes undisturbed.
Turn fillets, drizzle with maple syrup and tamari, and finish in oven until internal temp reaches 145 degrees, approximately 8 minutes.
Plate with onions and drizzle with pan sauce.
This recipe is provided by our partners at Market of Choice. Learn more at www.marketofchoice.com.
Healthy eating starts at the grocery store, so we’ve developed some great tips to help you get the biggest – and healthiest! – bang for your buck.
Each grocery store trip should start with a list so you can stay organized and avoid buying what you don’t need.
A well-stocked pantry can remove lot of fuss from your weekly shopping trip. Pantry items can often be stored for longer periods in a cool setting away from sunlight, but make sure you check instructions and expiration dates. Here are some items to consider for your pantry:
The outside aisles of grocery stores are where you’ll find whole, unpackaged foods, including produce and fish. These are the foods to focus on:
I spy with my little eye something that begins with the letter “E.” If you have kids or grandchildren chances are you’ve played that game. For me, the thing that begins with “E” is eyesight.
Without my contacts or glasses I’m legally blind. That big “E” on the eye chart isn’t visible to me (truth be told, neither is the wall). These days my myopia isn’t a problem. I wear my contacts during the day, and my glasses at night. It’s a routine I’ve followed for more than 40 years.
Now that I have Parkinson’s, someday the routine will change. A few scenarios could take place. My hands could tremor enough to make it impossible to wear contacts, my head could start shaking making corrective lens surgery risky, or both could happen.
The easiest solution would be to abandon the contacts and wear glasses for the rest of my life. I don’t like that option. I prefer life without them.
How will I know that my hands are tremoring too severely to safely handle contacts? How will I know if my head is moving too much and I’m no longer a candidate for corrective lens surgery? How will I know which surgical procedure, LASIK or full lens replacement,is right for me?
Fortunately, I tackled these questions shortly after my diagnosis. I see at least one of my doctors once a month. If one of them notices that I’m tremoring more than usual they have been instructed to call my neurologist. He will make the decision about whether it’s time to fix my eyes.
I’ve decided against LASIK because sometimes the procedure needs to be touched up.
But there’s a statistic that weighed heavily in my decision to abandon the LASIK option. According to the Alzheimer’s Association 50-to-80 percent of all Parkinson’s patients experience dementia as the disease progresses. If I needed a LASIK touch up, develop cataracts, and have dementia, how will I know that something is going wrong with my vision?
Cataracts should be a concern of all seniors, and they should be of particular importance to those of us who have Parkinson’s. According to the Kellogg Eye Center at the University of Michigan 90 percent of all people over the age of 65 have a cataract, and those between the ages of 75 and 85 have some vision loss due to cataracts.
If a Parkinson’s patient has dementia, how will they know (and communicate) that their vision is impaired?
I’ve decided that when it’s time, I’m going to have my natural lenses removed because cataracts cannot form on an artificial lens. I think that given the options available to me today, lens replacement is my best option because new lenses will provide me with good vision through the rest of my life. Like all of us, as I progress with the disease I’ll have plenty of other things to worry about. The ability to see clearly shouldn’t be one of them.
I spy with my little eye something that begins with the letter “P.”
“Plan” ahead for the day when you’ll need clear vision to make decisions about other things in your future.
Kevin Woo is a freelance writer based in San Francisco. You can follow him on Facebook or visit his website at www.kevinjwoo.com.
The holidays are a perfect time to show caregivers how much you appreciate their help and support all year round. We’ve gathered together a list of gift ideas for these special people who support our community in achieving their goals of living fully with Parkinson’s disease.
This holiday season looks different than the others. We are usually busy with holiday parties and visiting family and friends. But due to Covid-19, gatherings and travel could be limiting. We can still acknowledge our loved ones and caregivers with gifts given safely and from afar. Be sure to practice safe Covid-19 guidelines when looking at purchasing from the list of ideas below.
Give Time
1. Say bye-bye to dust-bunnies. With everything else going on, sometimes cleaning house can fall to the bottom of the priority list. Give your caregiver back some time and energy with a gift card for a house cleaning service.
2. Answer the dreaded “What’s for dinner?” question with a subscription to a meal service. Companies such as Sun Basket and Green Chef provide fresh, ready-to-cook meals that you can customize to your particular tastes and nutrition needs.
3. Got a slow drain? Furniture that needs to be assembled? New shelves to install? A gift card to a service company such as TaskRabbit can help knock those lingering household chores off your caregiver’s to-do list.
Give Relaxation
4. Massage has been proven to reduce stress and improve well-being. Give your caregiver an hour of bliss with a gift certificate from a massage therapist in your area.
5. Help caregivers put their best foot forward with a deluxe mani/pedi. Because fingers and toes need attention, too.
6. Wrap your caregiver in warmth with a quality shoulder and neck heating pad. This top-rated pad on Amazon Smile is microwaveable and lavender-scented for extra relaxation. (Choose Brian Grant Foundation as your charity on Amazon Smile and they’ll donate a portion of your purchase to support our programs!)
Give Comfort
7. Who doesn’t love a little bit of luxury? Give your caregiver some affordable luxe with a pair of cashmere socks. Take it from us, they’re worth it.
8. Sometimes all it takes to unwind is a nice cup of tea. A subscription box from The Republic of Tea or a holiday set from Portland’s Stash Tea will ensure your caregiver is sipping pretty all year long.
9. Who doesn’t love a nice, thick robe? Upgrade your caregiver’s shower game with a fleece robe like this top-rated version on Amazon Smile. It’s like a hug you can wear all morning.
Give Love
10. Let’s face it, being a caregiver can be hard work. Show how much you appreciate this person with a gift of your attention. Take your caregiver out to dinner or make a special meal at home and spend time listening. Time equals love and love is the greatest gift of all.
Bonus Idea!
A donation to the Brian Grant Foundation in honor of your caregiver will help us give you – and many others – the gift of living well with Parkinson’s all year long.
The person with Parkinson’s may struggle in the relationship as symptoms worsen and they lose the ability to do certain things. Their partner may struggle as they move further into the role of caregiver.
As important as it is to continue a normal life together, couples should prepare for the inevitable changes that are part of the overall picture of Parkinson’s. Whether you are a person with the disease or their partner, learn how to meet those challenges head on with honesty and compassion.
If you’re living with Parkinson’s, changes to your mental and physical health are inevitable and sometimes embarrassing. You worry about maintaining a sense of dignity and control. You worry how others perceive you. You worry whether the disease is taking a toll on your relationship with your partner.
It’s perfectly natural to feel this way, but understand that you are not alone. There are millions of people around the world who are going through the same struggle. You have friends and family offering a network of support. Best of all, you have a loving partner who thinks you’re amazing no matter what. Together, you can get through this.
Here are a few tips to help you out:
Keeping things bottled up inside is never a good idea. Speak openly and honestly about your feelings and hardships to your partner. Keep them aware of any mental or physical changes you might be experiencing. Communicating is harder for people with Parkinson’s as symptoms progress, so don’t be afraid to talk openly with your partner right out of the gate.
Yes, it feels crummy when you lose the ability to do certain tasks. These things happen, and when they do, your partner won’t mind assisting you. They love you. It’s human instinct to want to protect and care for your loved ones. Doing things to help others is incredibly fulfilling. That’s why your friends and family won’t mind helping you out when your partner is unavailable. They love you too.
You know firsthand it’s not easy having Parkinson’s, and caring for someone with the disease has its challenges as well. Remember to put yourself in your partner’s shoes and be mindful of their own struggles in and outside of the relationship. Be empathetic to their needs. Don’t take it personally when they need time or space to themselves.
Parkinson’s is a part of you, but it doesn’t control you, nor should it control the relationship you have with your partner. You are still the same person they fell in love with. There’s a reason why they’ve stuck with you through good times and bad. Does Parkinson’s have to be the main topic of conversation between you all day, every day? Probably not.
Being in love with someone with Parkinson’s disease comes with an assortment of emotions. Some days, you might feel loved and appreciated—possibly a sense of pride in being the main source of care and support for your partner. Other days, you might feel overwhelmed, sad or angry at the situation—maybe even frustrated with your partner.
These feelings are natural and nothing to be ashamed of. You are in the difficult position of providing care and support for a person who will become increasingly dependent on you, and that person also happens to be someone with whom you are romantically entwined.
Despite the complexities of this commitment, it helps to remember that honest communication, patience and understanding are usually all that’s needed to keep most relationships healthy and long-lasting.
Here are some tips to help you out:
Learn everything there is to know about Parkinson’s disease, including symptoms, treatments, side effects and care options. It’s never too soon to be your partner’s advocate and help them plan for the future. Know the limitations of your partner’s medical coverage. Have a clear understanding of their insurer’s policies for reimbursement of medical care so you can plan accordingly now and into the future.
Keep a record of your partner’s medications, doctor visits and symptoms to make medical appointments easier and more beneficial. If you start to observe new or worsening symptoms, such as motor function changes, mood/anxiety concerns or speech issues, notify your partner’s medical provider. Your partner may not be aware that these things are happening.
Discuss important plans and decisions for the future. Talk about wills, advanced directives and other life issues. Talk about your own feelings and hardships. Admit to your partner when you need a break or some time to yourself, and don’t feel guilty about that. It’s OK to ask family and friends for help, or seek professional in-home care when you need time to yourself.
Your health and state of mind can greatly impact your partner’s, especially as they become more dependent on your care. You need to take care of yourself if you’re going to be able to give the proper love and support that your partner needs. Remember that you have your own life, too. Keep in touch with yourself by pursuing your own hobbies and interests, staying active in the community, and socializing with friends and family.
By Kathryn Jones
One of the telltale signs of Parkinson’s disease is a short scuffle-like walk. Difficulty walking can slow you down and keep you from doing the things you love. Freezing episodes and balance mishaps can turn a simple, taken-for-granted ability such as walking into a challenge.
Science says moderate exercise like brisk walking can improve your gait, balance and mobility and help you live better with Parkinson’s. For example, an American Academy of Neurology study found that people with Parkinson’s who walked at a moderate-but-continuous pace on a treadmill for 50 minutes a day, three days a week eventually noted swifter strides. Not only could they walk faster and longer, they also improved their overall fitness levels.
Not a fan of the treadmill? No worries. Walking the dog counts too, and so does a Saturday morning stroll at the park. Want to get the biggest health benefit? Combine a walking routine with simple stretching and resistance exercises. Be sure to keep these seven tips in mind when you head out for your walk:
Moderate walking should make you feel like you’re getting a workout, but you shouldn’t be losing your breath. You should be able to carry on a conversation with a walking partner. Always stop immediately if you feel short of breath, dizzy or have any type of pain.
And remember, it’s common for people with Parkinson’s to become quite tired when walking. If you do, simply stop and rest for a moment. Remember, any exercise is good exercise. If you decided to take walk, you’ve already taken great steps toward better health.
If a freezing episode occurs during your stroll, try these four steps to get going again:
Always wear comfortable clothing with pockets so you can carry your ID and a cell phone with the name and number for an emergency contact. Never hesitate to call if you need help.
Remember, walking is simple and easy medicine for Parkinson’s disease. Taking a few purposeful steps every day can help improve many common symptoms and help you live better with Parkinson’s.
This optimistic guide addresses PD-related issues and symptoms along with emerging therapies. In each chapter, Dr. Okun offers patients the necessary tools to manage their disease and to ultimately find joy and fulfilment in their lives.
Dr. Okun recently answered two of the most common questions we receive from our community about living with Parkinson’s. Check out the questions and answers below. And sign up for a special Parkinson’s Awareness Month newsletter, from the book publisher, Robert Rose to get answers to more questions!
Apathy is actually more common than depression in Parkinson’s disease. It is also much more difficult to treat. One of the challenges of Parkinson’s disease treatment is that we know apathy can deflate a daily exercise regimen. We also know that a daily exercise regimen when utilized properly is “like a drug” for Parkinson’s disease treatment. We recommend the following strategies to overcome apathy when developing a PD exercise routine.
One of the most common questions we receive is what is the best diet for Parkinson’s disease. Unfortunately, we do not yet have the answer and the answer may turn out to vary from individual to individual. For prevention of Parkinson’s disease, a lot of collective evidence supports the Mediterranean diet, however we do not have data on the many different approaches. Also, we are learning that the microbiome may impact Parkinson’s symptoms and this “know-how” may eventually lead us into an era of personalized medicine. There is emerging data that the Mediterranean diet may be good for Parkinson’s symptoms, however the jury is still out. We need more well controlled research so that we can advise people of what to do– and not do. Similarly the jury is still out on probiotics and supplements. It is important that whatever you take, you share the bottles with your doctor and pharmacist to be sure there are no potential reactions with your existing medications. A multi-vitamin once a day is a good idea, but be careful not to mega-dose vitamins as we have observed people change their skin color and lose sensation in their legs as a result of “mega dosing.”