Mar 9, 2021
Nutrition is a vital component of maintaining and preserving good health. It may be an especially important consideration when one has a disease or other health condition that may impose certain dietary requirements or restrictions. At the same time, the standard recommendations for good health still stand – heart healthy eating, weight control, adequate fluid intake, limiting alcohol consumption, and more. With Parkinson’s disease, dietary choices and habits can help alleviate some symptoms. For example, fluid and fiber intake may help with constipation, increasing fluid intake may alleviate orthostatic hypotension, the feeling of dizziness when standing up, and a high protein meal can interfere with levodopa absorption, leading to fluctuations in medication effectiveness. In this second of two episodes with Dr. John Duda, Director of the Parkinson’s Disease Research, Education and Clinical Center at the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Professor of Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania, a Parkinson’s Foundation Center of Excellence, he tells what he recommends about diet and nutrition for his Parkinson’s patients, including when to look for organically grown produce.