Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurological disorder affecting movement and coordination, has long been managed through a combination of medication, lifestyle adjustments, and physical therapy. The new findings add to growing evidence that structured physical activity could play an important role in supporting long-term outcomes.
The study compared 70 low-active individuals living with Parkinson’s disease, 35 highly active individuals with the condition, and 35 healthy controls. Highly active participants were defined as those who engaged in moderate to high-intensity aerobic exercise at least twice a week for more than three months, while low-active participants exercised at that level less frequently.
Researchers evaluated participants across a wide range of motor, physical, cognitive, and quality-of-life measures. These included walking speed, balance tests, endurance assessments, muscle power, cognitive screening tools, and patient-reported questionnaires covering non-motor symptoms, depression, and overall wellbeing.
Findings showed that individuals in the highly active Parkinson’s group performed significantly better in multiple physical function measures compared with those who were less active. In several cases, their results were close to those of healthy control participants, particularly in areas such as mobility, balance, and aerobic capacity.
By contrast, low-active participants showed greater impairments in physical function and daily activity levels when compared with healthy individuals. However, cognitive outcomes were largely similar between both Parkinson’s groups, though healthy controls demonstrated slightly better processing speed.
Interestingly, the study found no major differences between the groups in terms of overall quality of life or depressive symptoms, suggesting that physical activity may have a more direct impact on motor and functional abilities than on emotional wellbeing.
While the results are encouraging, the researchers emphasized that the study’s cross-sectional design means it cannot prove cause and effect. In other words, it cannot confirm whether exercise directly slows disease progression or whether individuals with milder symptoms are simply more able to remain active.
Even so, the findings support the idea that regular aerobic exercise may be a valuable part of early Parkinson’s disease management, potentially helping patients maintain independence and physical function for longer.
The study referenced work by Thrue C et al., published in PM&R (2026), which examined the relationship between physical activity levels and both motor and non-motor outcomes in early-stage Parkinson’s disease.