The NHS notes: “Most people with Parkinson’s start to develop symptoms when they’re over 50, although around one in 20 people with the condition first experience symptoms when they’re under 40.”
Researchers do not yet know exactly why people get Parkinson’s, but it is thought that a combination of age, genetic and environmental factors cause the dopamine-producing nerve cells to die.
Parkinson’s UK says that around 145,000 people live with Parkinson’s in the UK, and that it is “the fastest growing neurological condition in the world”.
It explains that Parkinson’s develops when cells in the brain stop working properly and are lost over time. These brain cells produce a chemical called dopamine.