Rick et al: validation at last!
 

Here's the link:

http://news.ufl.edu/2011/05/16/parkinson/

Rick, Girija, and all others who have been looking in this direction for the causes of PD, this does seem a validation, though there is no knowing where this will take things......

As someone who has other auto-immune conditions written all over me, I would like to see this discussed more, as I am largely ignorant of the science, but wholly aware of the experience. For at least some of us this could lead to treatments, and for many it could also potentially mean being able to dodge the PD 'bullet'.

Thanks for all those who keep this up there where we can see it......

Lindy

Dr. Wahls
 

Lindy,

You may want to look at Dr. Wahl's book "Minding My Mitochondria"- I have posted about this before so you can search the forum and read my prior post(s) about this. She has/had MS and is in remission. Call it a cure, whatever, but she is no longer wheelchair bound and rides her bike 5 miles each way to work every day. I'd call that a cure, or good enough for one.

If you have other auto-immune issues, how could trying to follow her diet not help? I say try, because it is hard. Lots of shopping for fresh veggies and fruits, peeling, chopping, etc. Her recommendation is 9 cups day and that is a lot! Not much room for anything else in the tummy, but that's her point.

But besides the excellent recipes and meal plan suggestion, she gives a really good explanation of what our mitochondria do and need in order to function optimally. Also what foods provide those micronutrients as well as some supplements, although she by far prefers food as sources for what the body needs. As more and more research points out the involvement of the mitochondria in diseases like PD, it only makes sense to try and help those little fellas out!

She has an excellent analogy towards the end of her book which is along the lines of: your body is on fire. You can take meds and such to help reduce the flames, but as long as you keep pouring gas on that fire by eating foods that cause or encourage inflammation (and I would add, IMHO, stress), you're never going to beat that fire down. Makes total sense to me.

Good luck with the flames.

The book is pricey, yes, at about $32.00 USD, but I keep going back to it and learning things even though I've now "read" it three times!

Yes, Science continues to cautiously approach.
1- There are two broad categories of PD labeled "Senior Onset" and "Young Onset"
2- Both are driven by neuroinflammation and depend on the activation of microglia and the production of inflammatory cytokines, particularly TNFa and NKFB (I hope that I got that right)
3- There is a natural form of this state that comes with middle age - its extent and timing depend on genetics, environment, and life experience. As a result, some of us get it and some don't. This is the SOPD form.
4- YOPD, on the other hand, is more complex. It can originate at different ages for example. Prenatal exposure to the effects of maternal illness; youthful encounters with environmental toxins; middle-aged influenza - these are just a few of the factors that "prime" the system and create a vulnerability to a "trigger" that shifts us into a hypersensitive immune response.
5- This response is chronic and self destructive. Once it is triggered it takes on a life of its own. Dozens of things can accelerate or perpetuate it once it reaches this stage. Mercury. Manganese. Bacterial toxins. Bad teeth. UTIs. H. pylori. All the familiar names that have been batted around this forum over the years.
6- And stress. Our individual stress response can stimulate the immune juggernaut. A customized disease process.
7- Singular events trigger or accelerate. We all know the stories of influenza in the months before diagnosis. Of major deterioration after the death of a loved one. Even simple variation of routine worsens symptoms.

So, there we have it. Like a life, the path begins at a common point but then forks to find its individual route only to return to merge at the end of the journey. Each road unique but each trip the same.