Dr. David Perlmutter was recently in my area giving a talk at Matter of Health - a local healthfood store. I have followed his protocols for Parkinson's for several years. Everyone should read Grain Brain. Did you know that Parkinson's is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's? Did you know that it affects over 1 million people in the U.S. every year?
Parkinson's Testing and Treatment
Parkinson's is a combination of genetic and environmental exposures that usually hits people over age 60. Neurologists look for loss of pigmentation of the substantia nigra and the presence of Lewy bodies in the early stages of the disease to make the diagnosis. When the substantia nigra is damaged that causes striatal dopamine deficiency which causes resting tremors, rigidity, postural instability and a slow shuffling walk.
TESTING
People with Parkinson's have sleep disturbances, decreased sense of smell, gastrointestinal issues, sexual function issues, depression, systemic weakness, slow thinking and some scaling itching spots on the face called seborrheic dermatitis. As the disease progresses other symptoms appear like: difficulty swallowing, acid regurgitation, hypersalivation, constipation and incomplete bowel empyting. SIBO or small intestine bacterial overgrowth is also associated with Parkinson's. We have SIBO test kits, toxic urine metal kits and comprehensive stool function kits in the Nyack office.
TREATMENT
The gut is where I begin treatment. We remove all gluten, most grains and dairy out of the diet. Processed carbohydrates aggravate SIBO and don't allow leaky gut mucosa to heal properly. High-protein foods block the absorption of the main Parkinson's medications - Levadopa or L-dopa which affects their efficacy. I also test for Herpes 6 and elevated heavy metals with an eye on mercury. The golden triangle in Parkinson's is poor gut function, high viral loads, previous exposure to pesticides and elevated mercury.
Because of poor gut function I strongly recommend I.V. therapies. Ozone chelation and I.V. glutathione both improve function while we are healing the gut with L-glutamine, fish oils, NAC, turmeric, probiotics, gelatin, phosphatidyl choline and resveratrol.
Levadopa and carbidopa, Parkinon's meds, deplete the individual of critical amino acids - dopamine, tyrosine, tyrosine hydrolylase, norepinephrine and serotonin. Our patients take a liquid homeopathic RX of serotonin and dopamine. Amino Acids taken orally and in I.V. form are effective and not contra-indicated with L-dopa. Amino acid therapies protect against side effects and make Parkinson's medication more effective.
Until they come up with a wonderful new medication it is worth your time to investigate integrative medical options.
/blog/loss-of-smell-might-be-the-first-sign-of-parkinsons
/blog/do-pesticides-matter-ddt-and-alzheimers-
/blog/6-misconceptions-about-ozone-therapies
