What is Parkinson’s disease?

It is a progressive neurological disorder, which so far cannot be cured. Some people progress more slowly than others. Symptoms can be effectively controlled with medication for many years. Parkinson's results from a shortage of a chemical that helps instructions from the brain to cross from one nerve cell to the next, in a part of the brain called the Substantia Nigra, which has to do with controlling movement. We all lose some of this chemical as we get older, and the loss starts at birth! When we have lost about 80% of our dopamine we start to have symptoms. So people with Parkinson's have lost this chemical at a slightly faster rate than others. Affects one in 100 people over age 60. While the average age at onset is 60, people have been diagnosed as young as 18.

Causes of parkinson’s disease

- Your genes - Researchers have identified specific genetic mutations that can cause Parkinson's disease, but these are extremely uncommon, except in rare cases with many family members affected by Parkinson's disease.

- Environmental triggers - Exposure to certain toxins or environmental factors increase the risk of later Parkinson's disease, but the risk is relatively small

- Build-up of Harmful Proteins - Other research suggests that the cell's protein disposal system may fail in people with Parkinson's, causing proteins like alpha-synuclein to build up to harmful levels and trigger premature cell death.

The Substantia Nigra

THE BRAIN

• Symptoms differ from every person suffering from the disease.

• There are two types of symptoms, primary, secondary symptoms.

• Parkinson's is a complex condition that affects different people in different ways.

• The person who named this disease said:

“Parkinson's is a very individual condition, with each person experiencing

different symptoms.”

• Parkinsons affects everyone differently. Lack of energy, pain in muscles, changes in mood, and memory loss are common symptoms.

• Tremors are the most well-known symptom of Parkinson’s disease and often occur in the hands, fingers, forearms, feet, mouth, or chin. Typically, tremors take place when the limbs are at rest as opposed to when you’re moving.

• Slow movement (Bradykinesia) – manifests as a slowness in voluntary movement such as standing up, walking, and sitting down. This happens because of delayed transmission signals from the brain to the muscles. This may lead to difficulty initiating walking, but in more severe cases can cause “freezing episodes” once you’ve begun walking.

• Rigidity – otherwise known as muscle stiffness, affects the limbs and trunk and often produces muscle pain that increases during movement.

• Poor balance – happens because of the loss of reflexes that help posture. This causes unsteady balance, which can often lead to falls, as well as poor coordination.

• Secondary symptoms are less obvious in some people, and develop over time. Some secondary symptoms are:

• Difficulty showing facial expression, such as smiling or frowning.• Handwriting may become small, cramped.• Speech may become slow, whispery, or slurred.• Trouble chewing or swallowing, risk of choking;

excessive salivation, drooling.• Difficulty with fine movements such as tying shoe laces or buttoning shirts.• Loss of bowel and/or bladder control; constipation.• Emotional changes such as anxiety, depression, fear, or isolation.• Excessive sweating, sexual dysfunction, aches and pains.• Scaling, dry skin on the face or scalp.• Sleep problems, including waking up frequently during the night or suddenly falling asleep

during the day.• Cognitive problems (dementia), hallucinations, or loss of intellectual capacity, usually in

the later stages of Parkinson's disease.

Prevention is clearly the best option with Parkinson’s disease, because the treatments are expensive, and don’t always work.

There are several steps you can take to minimize your chances of developing the disease, but prevention can be very difficult sometimes.

Eat Fresh, Raw Vegetables•Studies have found that inadequate amounts of the B vitamin folate, known as folic acid, may raise the risk of Parkinson’s disease.Avoid Pesticides and Petrochemical Solvents•Exposure to pesticides, insecticides and herbicides have all been linked to Parkinson’s disease. When painting rooms in your house, use low-volatile paints and be sure you keep the windows open and have proper ventilation.Avoid Excess Iron•Eating a diet too high in iron puts you at an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

Parkinson's disease can't be cured, but medications can help control your symptoms, often dramatically.

•Medications for symptoms treatment has an effect on the early stages of PD, but cannot change the course of disease, neuron cells in the brain are continually missing, and medication cannot increase the quantity of cells, •In some later cases, surgery may be advised. Your doctor also may recommend lifestyle changes, especially on-going aerobic exercise. In some cases physical therapy that focuses on balance and stretching also is important.•Medications can help you manage problems with walking, movement and tremor by increasing your brain's supply of dopamine. However, dopamine can't be given directly, as it can't enter your brain.

Types of medicine perscripted:•Carbidopa-levodopa (Parcopa) - Levodopa, the most effective Parkinson's disease medication, is a natural chemical that passes into your brain and is converted to dopamine•Dopamine agonists - Unlike levodopa, dopamine agonists don't change into dopamine. Instead, they mimic dopamine effects in your brain. They aren't as effective in treating your symptoms as levodopa. •MAO B inhibitors - They help prevent the breakdown of brain dopamine by inhibiting the brain enzyme monoamine oxidase B (MAO B). This enzyme metabolizes brain dopamine