A Holistic Wellness Prescription for Parkinson's Disease: Evidence-Based Perspectives and Unmet Needs

In modern medicine the concept of wellness is often accompanied by various misconceptions arising from several factors, including a lack of clear definitions, the commercialization of wellness, and prevailing biases and stereotypes.

Although wellness has been successfully integrated into the management of conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, it has yet to be widely applied in the field of neurology. The World Federation of Neurology, American Academy of Neurology, European Academy of Neurology, and the World Health Organization (WHO) have adopted a formal definition of brain health that emphasizes the proactive role of lifestyle choices in modifying outcomes for neurological diseases, which closely aligns with the wellness approach. This shift has been further reinforced by WHO's adoption of the Intersectoral Global Action Plan on epilepsy and other neurological disorders (2022-2031), which seeks to improve access to treatment and care while promoting brain health across the lifespan. The global push for brain health highlights the need for a structured approach to wellness in neurological conditions such as Parkinson's disease (PD).

This critical review, conducted by a multidisciplinary task force commissioned by the International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society, aims to provide the current evidence base on wellness in PD, identify existing gaps in knowledge, and propose a framework to integrate wellness into the holistic care of individuals with PD.