Exercise Helps Battle Disease

INVERCARGILL man Gordon Grant might have Parkinson’s disease but he packs more exercise into his life than most.

And his wife, Anne, reckons his active lifestyle helps keeps some symptoms of the disease at bay.

Mr Grant could well be the poster boy for Parkinson’s Awareness Week this week, which has the theme of keep moving, keep fit.

People with Parkinson’s can find it difficult to perform everyday tasks such as drinking a cup of tea, smiling or writing a cheque.

But health professionals say if you have Parkinson’s that’s no reason to spend the rest of your life house-bound, sitting in a chair.

Regular exercise has been proved to slow progression of the disease, reduce falls, increase flexibility and balance and improves the body’s response to dopamine, a component of most Parkinson’s medications.

Mr Grant was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 12 years ago and admits at first that he thought he would not be able to do anything.

But the Grants had always been active trampers and, with the encouragement of Mrs Grant, he soon got his confidence back to resume hiking.

A year after diagnosis he managed to climb the highest peak in Rarotonga, The Needles, and from there had barely stopped for breath.

For years, the Grants would do a three to five day tramp every month.

Mr Grant said he preferred to do just one-day tramps these days, mainly because he found sleeping bags uncomfortable.

But exercise remained an integral part of his week.

His daily schedule included walks at Sandy Point or perhaps Forest Hill and he mowed his lawns — with a push mower.

Mowing the lawns by hand took two hours and, as if that was not enough, Mr Grant said he was also an avid woodchopper and gardener.

Mrs Grant said exercise had helped her husband cope with Parkinson’s.

“He got depressed when he wasn’t exercising.” But after a hearty tramp “he would always come back on top of the world although he would be loathe to admit it at the time” , she said.

Parkinson’s Southland and MS Society field officer Julie Jones said she hoped others would be inspired by Mr Grant.

He was proof that Parkinson’s did not mean the end of an active lifestyle.

Parkinson’s New Zealand had produced an exercise booklet and poster to encourage people with the condition to stay active.

“Although exercise may not halt the progression of Parkinson’s, it improves quality of life and directly affects symptoms such as stiffness, slowness of movement, as well as improving levels of fitness and a sense of wellbeing,” Ms Jones said.

Parkinson’s is a non-curable neurological condition that affects about one person in 500. While it is more common in people aged over 65 years, people as young as 20 have been diagnosed.

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