A lively match of ping pong may confer more than just bragging rights – new research says it could ease Parkinson’s disease symptoms, too.
A recent study found people suffering from Parkinson’s disease showed significant improvements across a number of symptoms after partaking in a six-month ping pong program.
“Ping pong, which is also called table tennis, is a form of aerobic exercise that has been shown in the general population to improve hand-eye coordination, sharpen reflexes and stimulate the brain,” said Dr. Ken-ichi Inoue, from Fukuoka University in Japan.
“We wanted to examine if people with Parkinson’s disease would see similar benefits that may in turn reduce some of their symptoms,” Inoue explained.
The study included 12 patients, average age 73, who had mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease and had been diagnosed with the disease for an average of seven years. After being examined for symptoms and their severity, the participants played ping pong at least once a week for six months. The ping pong exercise program was created by experienced players from the university’s department of sports science, specifically for Parkinson’s disease patients.
After just three months into the six-month program, the researchers saw patients experiencing vast improvements in speech, handwriting, getting dressed, getting out of bed, walking, facial expression, posture, rigidity, and slowness of movement and hand tremors.
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The study is scheduled to be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s annual meeting in Toronto, held from April 25 to May 1.
“While this study is small, the results are encouraging because they show ping pong — a relatively inexpensive form of therapy — may improve some symptoms of Parkinson’s disease,” Inoue said in an academy news release. “A much larger study is now being planned to confirm these findings.”
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