In my profession, I see Parkinson’s Disease a ton. They have studied a lot about this devastating neurological disease, but there is so much more to uncover. If you just want to learn more about this disease process or if you have a loved one diagnosed with it then this is the blog post for you.
Parkinson’s Disease is a progressive neurological disease that can cause muscle stiffness, shuffling gait, tremors, bradykinesia (slow movements), and vocal changes. These symptoms usually start slowly and worsen as the disease progresses. Sadly, there is no cure for Parkinson’s, but newer extended-release medications have seemed to significantly improve symptoms. Physical and occupational therapy can also help with gross and fine motor skills. Speech therapy is another great resource to decrease the severity of the symptoms that some may have to manage.
The role Dopamine plays
Neuro-physiologically, what is happening during Parkinson’s disease is neurons in the brain are breaking down gradually, which can lead to a non-functional neuron. Many of the neurons produce the chemical messenger dopamine. Without the neurons, there will be a decrease in dopamine. Dopamine is an excitatory hormone, and its function within the nervous system is to increase emotions of pleasure, satisfaction, and motivation. It also impacts your memory, mood, learning, sleep concentration, movement, and more.
Without it, it leads to disturbances in sleep, anxiety, depression, agitation, memory loss, tremors, loss of balance and coordination, increased muscle stiffness, and cramps. (Cleveland Clinic, 2022.)
Structures in the brain affected by Parkinson’s Disease.
This seems to have an effect on the hypothalamus as well as the cerebellum.
The Hypothalamus is a collection of neurons located deep in the base of the brain. It controls your body temperature, desire to eat, thirst mechanism, and sex drive. It can release or hinder the release of hormones. Some patients with Parkinson’s report being cold. This would make sense, as the hypothalamus is your body’s temperature regulator. If there is a disruption with the neurons in that area of the brain, it will cause alterations in its function.
The cerebellum is at the bottom of the back of your brain and functions for balance, sight, rhythmic timing, and processing. In this disease process, there is a lack of positional awareness and balance.
We have discussed Broca’s area before in the blog I will link it here: https://wonderfullymade-kmk.com/what-are-the-speech-areas-of-the-brain/
The Broca’s area’s function is language production. Broca’s area in the brain is located in the frontal lobe, closer to your mouth. I remember this because Broca sounds like Boca, and la boca in Spanish means mouth. Commonly located on the left side of the brain for most people. This is because the majority of people are right-handed. However, many left-handers also have these areas on the left side.
With Parkinson’s disease, many experience vocal changes. Mayo Clinic states in their article, “You may speak softly or quickly, slur, or hesitate before talking. Your speech may be more of a monotone rather than the usual speech patterns.” A lot of patients not only have difficulty with this because it is straining, irritating, and exhausting to deal with but also because they no longer sound like themselves. Can you imagine speaking and not recognizing your own voice anymore? It has to be difficult for your self-perception and identity.
Natural ways to increase dopamine
Food is so important. Make sure you are eating food high in magnesium and rich in tyrosine. The Cleveland Clinic wrote some ways to naturally increase your dopamine levels in their article; they wrote, “Tyrosine is an amino acid, once in the body it can be converted to dopamine. These foods can include: chicken, almonds, apples, avocados, bananas, beets, dark chocolate, green leafy vegetables, green tea, beans, oatmeal, peas, pumpkin seeds, tomatoes, turmeric, and watermelon. “ (Cleveland Clinic, 2022.)
Magnesium is great for stress resilience. Do activities that you enjoy and decrease your stress levels as much as you can.
Other important supplements for dopamine levels are L-theanine, vitamin D, B5 and B6, as well as Omgea-3 essential fatty acids. (Cleveland Clinic, 2022.) You might have asked yourself, “Well what in the world is L-theanine?” Don’t worry, I did as well; keep reading, my friend 🙂
Supplementation
-L-theanine is a nonproteinogenic amino acid in green tea and mushrooms. It has been shown to affect brain function by relieving stress, improving mood and memory, and maintaining normal sleep patterns. This academic study gave evidence to support that L-theanine may have neuroprotective properties that improve attention and enhance working memory and executive functions. (Baba, 2021.) So interesting!
-Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin. We can obtain it when we get in the sunlight; when absorbed by the skin, the UV rays initiate vitamin D synthesis. I remember this by thinking, “Sunny D” (which I do not recommend drinking, haha). Vitamin D increases intestinal absorption of important nutrients like magnesium, calcium, and phosphate.
-Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid) is necessary to synthesize co-enzyme A. Co-enzyme A is needed for cellular energy production and breaking down proteins, fats, and carbs. It is needed in red blood cell production (erythropoiesis ) and stress resilience.
-Vitamin B6, also called pyridoxine, plays a role in your brain development, immune system, and nervous system. You can find this vitamin in foods like fish, chicken, bananas, and potatoes.
Omgea-3 is an essential fatty acid. You can find it in fish like salmon or mackerel.
Seeking Hope
I hope you learned something new, I know I did as I was conducting some research for this blog post. I encourage you, if you have family and/or friends affected by this condition, to reach out or check in with them. Ask how they are doing, and if you feel so inclined, see how you might be able to help them. It could be as simple as being a listening ear. Not only do the patients go through so much but also the family. Caretakers can become burnt out due to the high demand they feel.
They are everything to the people who need them, and sometimes, due to the progression of this disease, they may not feel appreciated by their sick loved ones. Parkinson’s can lead to agitation and frustration. This is very hard to manage day in and day out. You may be able to give someone a break to run to the store or go do something for themselves while also investing in the person who’s life has looked a little different since this diagnosis. Whatever it may look like, I know it would be a major blessing for anyone who is caretaking their loved ones. That is what we are here for any way, to help carry one another’s burden.
Prayer
Lord, I pray for anyone who is going through a hard season with a sick loved one. No matter if it is Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s, ALS, Cancer, CP, or any other condition. It is hard. It is so challenging to see your loved one hurting, in pain, confused, and at times unrecognizable. Lord, I pray for strength and endurance for the friend/family member and for the caretaker. May they rely on you and gain their strength from you alone, Lord, for we know that anything else in this world with promises to fulfill will fall short, but Lord, you never will. Praise you, God, for your never-changing attribute and your steadfast love. Thank you also for your sovereignty. We can take heart that you have control of ALL things. To you, the glory, God. Amen.
SOURCES
Baba, Y., Inagaki, S., Nakagawa, S., Kaneko, T., Kobayashi, M., & Takihara, T. (2021). Effects of I-Theanine on Cognitive Function in Middle-Aged and Older Subjects: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Study. Journal of medicinal food, 24(4), 333-341. https://doi.org/10.1089/jmf.2020.4803
Cleveland Clinic, C. C. medical. (2022, March 23). Dopamine: What it is, Function & Symptoms. Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22581-dopamine
Cleveland Clinic, C. C. medical. (2022, April 15). Parkinson’s disease: What it is, causes, symptoms & treatment. Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/8525-parkinsons-disease-an-overview