Brain Doctor Park Joo-hong's Story on Parkinson's Disease

What is Parkinson's disease?
Despite remarkable advances in modern medicine and medical technology, cognitive impairment and brain diseases remain among the most difficult to treat. Being suddenly diagnosed with dementia or Parkinson's disease without prior warning can be truly devastating. Parkinson's disease is a brain disorder caused by damage or degenerative changes in the nerve cells that produce dopamine, a crucial neurotransmitter that regulates the body's motor functions smoothly and smoothly.
Before being diagnosed with brain disease, minor physical symptoms are sure to signal symptoms, but they are often overlooked, often missing the golden opportunity for treatment. This often leads to a difficult and long struggle for both patients and caregivers. How can we maintain brain activity and health even as we age and enter old age? Maintaining brain health alone isn't enough. The mental brain (mind), which drives the physical brain, and the body, which supports it—in other words, the brain, mind, and body—must all be healthy to prevent and overcome brain disease. Let's examine Dr. Park Joo-hong's three tips for brain health. First, manage your mind with positive thinking. Second, manage your brain by ensuring it receives the proper oxygen and glucose it needs. Third, exercise to stimulate and maintain your body and mind. Let's explore how these balanced efforts can improve lifestyle habits to maintain a healthy brain, mind, and body even as you age. What is the difference between Parkinson's disease and dementia?
Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are both neurodegenerative diseases, but their onset differs. While both share the commonality of being caused by aging and brain dysfunction, they are distinctly different illnesses. To put it simply, dementia begins with cognitive impairment, a symptom of Alzheimer's disease, followed by motor dysfunction, whereas Parkinson's disease primarily begins with motor symptoms followed by cognitive impairment. In other words, while Alzheimer's disease begins with blinking, Parkinson's primarily begins with tremors. Furthermore, while Alzheimer's patients often cannot remember anything, Parkinson's patients can recall memories with prompts. It's scary to say, but Parkinson's and dementia have a high coexistence rate of about 40%. In fact, it's known that about 40% of Parkinson's patients will develop dementia. For both diseases, early detection and prompt treatment are the best approach. Let's learn about the early symptoms, 5 stages of progression, and representative symptoms of Parkinson's disease, and how to diagnose and prevent it in advance.

Is Parkinson's disease curable?
A common misconception about Parkinson's disease is that it's life-threatening. However, Parkinson's disease is not life-threatening. Even patients with Parkinson's disease have a similar life expectancy to those with healthy individuals. With proper treatment and symptom management, even those diagnosed with Parkinson's disease can lead long-term, social lives without significant inconvenience. Treating Parkinson's disease primarily involves medication, exercise therapy, and lifestyle modification. Treatment involves appropriate use of medication to alleviate symptoms, maintaining physical strength through exercise, and improving lifestyle habits to minimize discomfort. Without any one of these, treatment is difficult to achieve. Only by achieving a balance of all three can one maintain an independent and high-quality life. Parkinson's disease is not a race. It requires long-term treatment, comparable to a cross-country journey, the ultimate long-distance pursuit. In fact, Parkinson's disease is one of the most difficult diseases to treat. Physical damage to the brain is irreversible. However, with prevention and treatment during the various stages of its progression, treatment is not impossible. The best treatment is prevention, or treatment before physical damage to the brain occurs. Therefore, it is crucial for patients and their families to have a clear and accurate understanding of the disease and to understand the patient's discomfort and difficult feelings.

What is the 3·3·3 Parkinson's Disease Integrated Treatment Program by Dr. Park Joo-hong, a Doctor of Oriental Medicine and Doctor of Medicine?
Dr. Park Joo-hong, a Doctor of Oriental Medicine and a Doctor of Medicine, has decades of research on brain diseases. Based on this belief, he believes that achieving complete brain health requires not only addressing physical brain function but also addressing the balance between the mind and body. The development of the 3·3·3 Parkinson's Integrated Treatment Program is a direct result of this approach. This program examines all the mind-body factors that affect the brain and comprehensively improves each function to halt the progression of Parkinson's and alleviate symptoms. To achieve a healthy, breathing brain, you will gain accurate information on how to maintain mental balance, not just physical brain function. Let's explore proactive preventative measures to maintain a healthy brain before old age arrives.