Parkinson’s Disease News: Pesticides May be a Cause, While Omega Three Acids May Prevent

Today brought exciting news in the research of Parkinson’s disease, the central nervous system disorder that causes impaired speech, motor skills, and other reduced functioning in millions of Americans.

First, researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles released a study they say is strong evidence that some Parkinson’s cases are caused by exposure to toxic pesticides. Meanwhile, another team of university researchers announced that they have found omega three fatty acids appear to shield brain cells from a malformed protein caused by a gene mutation in Parkinson’s disease.

UCLA Team Details Pesticide-Parkinson’s Link

The UCLA research confirms what has been long suspected, that exposure to toxic pesticides can cause debilitating neurological disorder. A team of scientists poured over about two decades of public records regarding the use of pesticides in the Central Valley of California, a primary agricultural area. The team then determined estimates for pesticide exposure in areas next to the fields.

Nearly 400 people who lived within 500 yards of fields where two common types of pesticides were sprayed were examined and compared to about 300 people who did not live near agricultural fields.

The result was that on average, people who lived near fields where the pesticides maneb and paraquat were sprayed were 75 percent more likely to develop Parkinson’s disease, among other findings.

LSU Scientists Document Benefit of Omega Three Acids

Researchers from Louisiana State University announced they have determined that taking omega three fatty acids may protect people from Parkinson’s disease.

The Ataxin-1 gene is caused by the improper folding of a protein produced by the gene. Misshaped proteins present a problem for the body, since they cannot be properly processed by the body’s cell machinery and can collect in tangled clumps of toxic protein that can kill the cell.

The researchers studied the effect and found that docosahexaenoic acid, an omega three fatty acid, protects cells from this defect.

The LSU study findings recently were presented at a meeting of the American Society for Nutrition, Experimental Biology.

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