Care for Parkinson's Disease

• Avoid spine deformity by adjust the body postures at rest. For example, lie flat on the firm mattress without using a pillow to prevent spines from bending forward.
• Encourage patients to participate in social events and exercise regularly every day.
• Simplify the interior decoration for home to avoid tripping hazard. Patients with Parkinson's Disease will gradually become clumsy; thus, it is important to avoid furniture with sharp corner, to install handrails on the stairs and restroom and to place non-slip mat in the restrooms.
• Receive physical therapy to reduce the severity of disability.
• Nutrition: Some patients may lose weight due to insufficient calories intake. Cut food into small pieces or grind the food for easy swallow. Eat frequent but small meals.
• Studies showed that reducing protein intake enhance the effect of medication. It is recommended to have low protein diet during daytime and reinforce protein intake at night.
• Avoid excessive intake of vitamin B6, but seniors with Parkinson's Disease need to take more other kinds of vitamins and minerals than non-PD seniors. Sugar and fat are good sources for calories for patients with Parkinson's disease. Vitamin B1, B2, and B3 are necessary enzymes for producing calories. Patients need all these nutrients for energy and strength.
• Sleep: Senior patients might have illusion; thus, there should be proper lighting in the room and keep the door open at night. Avoid isolating from the outside world to relieve anxious.
• Learn to adjust to new schedules. Do one thing at a time and take your time to finish your daily routine without haste. Simplify the use of daily items. Use zippers instead of buttons, larger clothes for easy put-on and take-off.
• Find new hobbies and carry on a normal life style. Patients are able to discover new hobbies and fun on TV, radio, in music, books and magazines. Family members and close friends should accompany patients while traveling.
• Do not participate in hasty trips. Exhaustion or tension will shorten the effect of medicine and will prolong the time for the medicine to kick in.
• Patients should figure out the time for taking medicine before the trips that involves jet lag. Consult your doctor if patient is thinking about taking sleeping pills.
• Family members should keep an eye on patient’s reaction after taking the medicine. If the patient’s mobility decreases or even falls occur afterwards, then it is time to adjust the prescription.