Alan Alda: First Sign of Parkinson's Was Throwing Pillow at Wife
Newser • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Alan Alda revealed that the first sign of his Parkinson's disease was acting out his dreams at night, linked to REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD), rather than the typical symptom of a shaky hand.
- RBD causes people to physically act out their dreams due to a malfunction in the usual muscle "off switch" during REM sleep, and is strongly associated with Parkinson's and other neurological diseases.
- Diagnosed with Parkinson's in 2015, Alda is among over 1.1 million Americans living with the disease, while RBD affects about 2% of people over 50 but is believed to be underdiagnosed.
- Evaluation of RBD involves sleep history and overnight studies, with treatments focusing on safety and medications like melatonin or clonazepam to reduce nighttime activity.
- Alda also reflected on his time on M-A-S-H, describing the strong camaraderie among the cast who stayed together between shots to share laughs rather than retreating to dressing rooms.
