Effects of mind-body exercises on cognitive impairment in people with Parkinson's disease: A mini-review

Old problems, new solutions: harnessing technology and innovation in Parkinson's disease-evidence and experiences from Thailand

The prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) is increasing rapidly worldwide, but there are notable inequalities in its distribution and in the availability of healthcare resources across different world regions. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including Thailand, bear the highest burden of PD so there is an urgent need to develop effective solutions that can overcome the many regional challenges associated with delivering high-quality, and equitable care to a diverse population with limited resources. This article describes the evolution of healthcare delivery for PD in Thailand, as a case example of a LMIC. The discussions reflect the author's presentation at the Yoshikuni Mizuno Lectureship Award given during the 8th Asian and Oceanian Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Congress in March 2023 for which he was the 2023 recipient. The specific challenges faced in Thailand are reviewed along with new solutions that have been implemented to improve the knowledge and skills of healthcare professionals nationally, the delivery of care, and the outcomes for PD patients. Technology and innovation have played an important role in this process with many new tools and devices being implemented in clinical practice. Without any realistic prospect of a curative therapy in the near future that could halt the current PD pandemic, it will be necessary to focus on preventative lifestyle strategies that can help reduce the risk of developing PD such as good nutrition (EAT), exercise (MOVE), good sleep hygiene (SLEEP), and minimizing environmental risks (PROTECT), which should be initiated and continued (REPEAT) as early as possible.

Is Frequency of Practice of Different Types of Physical Activity Associated with Health and a Healthy Lifestyle at Different Ages?

Physical activity (PA) has been shown to be related to physical and mental health. Yet there are few studies on how the frequency of PA relates to health and a healthy lifestyle. We aimed to investigate how the frequency of different PAs is associated with the following health indicators: body mass index (BMI), substance consumption, physical health, and mental health. We focused on three types of PA: (1) medium- to high-intensity aerobic exercise; (2) low- to medium-intensity relaxing exercise; and (3) outdoor leisure PA. A total of 9617 volunteers, aged 19 to 81, participated in the study. The relationships between the frequencies of the three types of PA and health-related and sociodemographic factors were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. We found that women more frequently engaged in PA type 2, and men in types 1 and 3. A higher frequency of PA was associated with lower BMI and less or no smoking behavior; higher education (PAs 1 and 3); higher age (PAs 2 and 3); better physical health (PAs 1 and 3); and better mental health (PA 3). In conclusion, higher frequency of different PAs was significantly associated with better physical and mental health, less smoking, higher age, and a higher level of education.

The effect of yoga classes on the mental health of female college students

BACKGROUND

Mental health problems have become prominent among college students. The purpose of this study was to to explore the influence of yoga course on female college students' mental health.

METHODS

Three hundred fifty-four female college students enrolled in Anhui University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2020 or 2021 were selected and divided into three groups according to whether they took PE courses and the content of PE courses: No physical education group (control group) (N.=131), aerobics group (N.=120), and yoga group (N.=103), questionnaire survey was conducted before, at the middle (8 weeks), and at the end of the course. The patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) and Connor- Davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC) were used to evaluate the mental health status of female college students at different time points.

RESULTS

The demographic characteristics of the three groups showed no significant differences. Repeated measures Analysis of Variance showed that there were time main effect, group and time interaction effect and group main effect in patients' health questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) and Connor- Davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC) among the three groups before and after practice. Patient health score: The score of PHQ-9 and GAD-7 in yoga group at 16 weeks, at 8 weeks, before practice (P<0.05), and the scores of yoga group at 8 weeks and 16 weeks were lower than those of control group and aerobics group (P< 0.05). For CD-RISC: the score of yoga group at16 weeks, 8 weeks, before practice (P<0.05), and the scores at 8 and 16 weeks were higher than those of aerobics group and control group (P<0.05); There was no significant difference before and after exercise between the control group and the aerobics group (P< 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The teaching of yoga course can enhance the level of psychological resilience, improve depression and anxiety, promote mental health, and improve subjective well-being and improve the quality of college life.

Exercise-Boosted Mitochondrial Remodeling in Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a movement disorder characterized by the progressive degeneration of dopaminergic neurons resulting in dopamine deficiency in the striatum. Given the estimated escalation in the number of people with PD in the coming decades, interventions aimed at minimizing morbidity and improving quality of life are crucial. Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are intrinsic factors related to PD pathogenesis. Accumulating evidence suggests that patients with PD might benefit from various forms of exercise in diverse ways, from general health improvements to disease-specific effects and, potentially, disease-modifying effects. However, the signaling and mechanism connecting skeletal muscle-increased activity and brain remodeling are poorly elucidated. In this review, we describe skeletal muscle-brain crosstalk in PD, with a special focus on mitochondrial effects, proposing mitochondrial dysfunction as a linker in the muscle-brain axis in this neurodegenerative disease and as a promising therapeutic target. Moreover, we outline how exercise secretome can improve mitochondrial health and impact the nervous system to slow down PD progression. Understanding the regulation of the mitochondrial function by exercise in PD may be beneficial in defining interventions to delay the onset of this neurodegenerative disease.