Parkinson's disease

Disease

Foods That May Help

Foods linked to Parkinson's disease in the research literature.

CoffeeReduces risk of
Source: How Not to Age
Solanaceae vegetablesProtects against
Nicotine from edible Solanaceae (peppers, tomatoes, potatoes) associated with reduced Parkinson disease risk
Source: How Not to Age
Bell PeppersReduces risk of
Eating nicotine-rich vegetables, especially peppers, was associated with significantly lower risk of Parkinson's disease
Source: How Not to Die
BerriesReduces risk of
A Harvard study of 130,000 people found that people who eat more berries do appear to have a significantly lower risk of developing Parkinson's; Berry anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins had neuroprotective effects in cellular models of Parkinson's disease. Those who consumed the most berries appeared to have about 25 percent lower risk.
Source: How Not to Die
Peppers (Solanaceae)Reduces risk of
2+ times per week
Nicotine from edible Solanaceae (peppers, tomatoes, potatoes) was associated with reduced risk of Parkinson's disease. Eating peppers two or more times per week was associated with a 30 percent reduced risk.
Source: How Not to Die
Green TeaReduces risk of
A quantitative review found that tea consumption was associated with reduced risk of Parkinson's disease.
Source: How Not to Die
GrapesProtects against
Grape seed polyphenol extract was reported to reduce the incidence of Parkinson's disease involving misfolded proteins by interfering with misfolded-protein aggregates
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
SesameProtects against
Peptides present in sesame cake reduced alpha-synuclein aggregation and reduced MPP+-induced dopaminergic neuron degeneration (Ma et al. 2020)
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
SpirulinaProtects against
Compounds which may play a role include spirulina, vitamin D, caffeine, probiotics.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
CoffeeProtects against
Coffee shown to protect against Parkinson's disease
Source: The Longevity Diet

Compounds That May Help

Bioactive compounds linked to Parkinson's disease in the research.

Nicotinamide RibosideAddresses
The NADPARK study was a randomized phase I trial of NR supplementation in Parkinson's disease
Source: How Not to Age
FlavonoidsReduces risk of
Habitual intake of dietary flavonoids was associated with lower risk of Parkinson's disease. Those who consumed the most berries appeared to have about 25 percent lower risk.
Source: How Not to Die
MetforminProtects against
Metformin, the diabetes drug that may be a complex I inhibitor, was found to stop neurodegeneration in a worm Parkinson's model by reducing mitochondrial activity and ROS. Whether metformin could be a viable treatment for some types of Parkinson's is not yet known.
Source: How We Age
EGCGProtects against
EGCG has shown a neuroprotective role because of its ability to cross the blood-brain barrier and acts as a radical scavenger and chelator of iron ions; encourages proper folding of alpha-synuclein monomers
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
CurcuminProtects against
Curcumin reduces the incidence of NF-kB mediated neuroinflammation and targets Toll-like receptor-4
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
ResveratrolProtects against
Resveratrol restricts mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis in nigrostriatal cells via the protein kinase B/glycogen synthase kinase-3beta pathway
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
LycopeneProtects against
Lycopene relieves oxidative stress, increases NADH dehydrogenase and SOD activity in the corpus striatum and lowers malondialdehyde levels
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
Coenzyme Q10Protects against
Coenzyme Q10 prevents MPTP-induced neurotoxicity and blocks the electron transfer between complex 1 and other complexes of the electron transport chain; Principal factors include coenzyme Q10.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
NiacinProtects against
Niacin (vitamin B3) is a precursor of NAD-NADH and needed for producing dopamine; effects include reduction in inflammation, enhancing NAD/NADH ratio, and boosting dopamine synthesis
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
GinsenosidesReduces risk of
Ginsenosides restrict astrogliosis and microgliosis and reduce synthesis of proinflammatory cytokines in substantia nigra
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
OleuropeinProtects against
Oleuropein seems to inhibit alpha-synuclein aggregation and reduce its tendency to form toxic oligomers in neuronal degeneration of Parkinson's disease
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
Omega-3 fatty acidsProtects against
Principal factors in nutrition-related approaches to Parkinson's include omega fatty acids.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
ProbioticsProtects against
Principal factors include probiotics.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
SpermidineProtects against
A diet rich in spermidine may also enhance mitophagy. The role of spermidine in protecting against neurodegeneration is important.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
Hydrogen SulfideProtects against
Hydrogen sulfide provides protection against oxidative damage and plays a positive role in neurogenesis. N-acetylcysteine and methionine are precursors.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
CaffeineProtects against
Compounds which may play a role include caffeine.
Source: Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity

Risk Factors

Foods and compounds that may contribute to Parkinson's disease.

Nicotinamide
NAM can cause Parkinson's-like symptoms in rats; MeNAM (metabolite) is toxic to nerve cells in vitro
Source: How Not to Age
Dairy/Milk
Overall dairy consumption was associated with significantly increased risk of Parkinson's disease. Risk may increase 17 percent for every daily cup of milk consumed.; A dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies found that dairy foods intake increases the risk of Parkinson's disease.; Dairy consumption linked to Parkinson's disease risk
Source: How Not to Die
Organochlorine Pesticides
Elevated serum pesticide levels were associated with increased risk of Parkinson's disease. Organochlorine insecticides were found in substantia nigra in Parkinson's disease brains.
Source: How Not to Die

Recipes That May Help

Sources

How Not to Age
How Not to Die
How We Age
Nutrition, Food and Diet in Ageing and Longevity
The Longevity Diet