Exercise as Effective Treatment of Parkinson's Disease

That the Parliament understands that regular exercise has particular benefits for people with Parkinson’s, including emerging evidence that it may be able to slow down or even reverse the progression of the condition, which no current medicine or treatment can do, and improve fitness and mental health; commends the efforts of Parkinson’s UK Scotland and its volunteer-led local groups, along with physiotherapists and exercise providers, in offering regular face-to-face exercise opportunities in South Scotland and across the country; understands that the coronavirus outbreak has caused 2,000 Parkinson’s exercise sessions to be cancelled across the UK, including hundreds in Scotland; appreciates the huge efforts that Parkinson’s UK is making to enable people with the condition to exercise safely at home during lockdown, including offering online exercise sessions, signposting to other resources, and producing printed information materials; congratulates Parkinson’s UK Scotland on securing a grant from Big Lottery Scotland to fund a groundbreaking three-year project to enable people across Scotland with the condition to access physical activity in the community to help them to self-manage their condition, and acknowledges the charity’s call for exercise to be recommended to everyone with Parkinson’s as part of their treatment plan.