Parkinson’s disease is when a part of your brain deteriorates, causing more severe symptoms over time. While this condition is best known for how it affects muscle control, balance and movement, it can also cause a wide range of other effects on your senses, thinking ability, mental health and more.
The risk of developing Parkinson’s disease naturally increases with age, and the average age at which it starts is 60 years old. It’s slightly more common in men or people designated male at birth (DMAB) than in women or people designated female at birth (DFAB).
While Parkinson’s disease is usually age-related, it can happen in adults as young as 20 (though this is extremely rare, and often people have a parent, full sibling or child with the same condition).
Parkinson’s disease is very common overall, ranking second among age-related degenerative brain diseases. It’s also the most common motor (movement-related) brain disease. Experts estimate that it affects at least 1% of people over age 60 worldwide.
Parkinson's Disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects movement, characterized by the loss of dopamine-producing cells in the brain.
Early symptoms may include tremors, bradykinesia (slowness of movement), muscle rigidity, and postural instability.
The exact cause is not fully understood, but it involves a combination of genetic and environmental factors.
