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ex-Member
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Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 110
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ex-Member
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 110
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chasmo
I read some where that Ethiopia has the lowest incidence of Parkinsons. Their average life expectancy is 44 years. I wonder if this is the same for the gypsies?? So are they dying from other causes before they can get it??
One has to wonder what their incidence of young onset is.
Given the Ethiopian's living conditions, that would be a hard ( and dangerous!!) survey to take!
Charlie
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Ethiopia does have the lowest recorded prevalence of Parkinson's Disease. The Bulgarian Gypsies do have a much lower life expectancy than other Europeans. Something usually gets them before PD does. If the life expectancy in the U.S. was only 44 as it is in Ethiopia, Parkinson's Disease would be a rare medical disorder in the U.S.A..
Although it is widely assumed that PD is due to low dopamine, it is caused when the potency of acetylcholine (which increases muscle contraction) is greater than that of dopamine (which reduces muscle contraction). So in order to be prone to getting PD somebody must be pretty good at producing acetylcholine. Healthinessin one resepect increases the proneness to illness in another.
Due to the severe malnutrition amongst the Ethiopians and Bulgarian Gypsies, neither would be good at producing acetylcholine, as any one of a number of nutritional deficiencies can prevent acetylcholine from being formed. So their severe malnutrition would make them less prone to developing Parkinson's Disease.
Consequently, I suspect that if they were measured, that the average American with PD actually had much higher dopamine levels than most Ethiopians and Gypses that didn't have PD.
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