Nutraceuticals and Parkinsons Disease - Research Paper Example

The most common environmental factors are toxins and exposure to pesticides. Toxic chemicals like MPTP, Toluene, Carbon Disulphide, and cyanide; and certain pesticides like rotenone and paraquat affect significant changes in vital neural components. Exposure to toxic chemicals and pesticides is found to cause damage and loss of “dopaminergic neurons and clinical Parkinsonism” (Chao et al.). Pesticides like paraquat and rotenone have also been observed to depreciate both dopaminergic neurons and typical Parkinsonism. Furthermore, these chemicals inspire contact with genetic expression thereby curbing genetic mutations.

As a result, genetics have been particularly considered in the continuing research on Parkinson’s disease. There is no known cure for Parkinson’s disease so far, and most of the treatments available today are used to either prevent or contain the degeneration of the disease. According to Chao et al (2012), current treatments for Parkinson’s disease are categorized into two main subgroups: symptom-relieving drugs and surgical treatments. Common symptom-relieving drugs include L-dopa, dopamine agonists, bromocriptine, ropinirole, cabergoline, and pergolide among others.

Examples of surgical treatments for Parkinson’s disease patients are “deep brain stimulation, implantation of embryonic dopaminergic cells, and gene therapy” (Chao et al.). These surgical treatments generally aim for tempering motor and non-motor symptoms. Recently, the use of nutraceuticals has been widely employed as an alternative to treating degenerative symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. One example of nutraceuticals – essentially refers to “food or food products” (Chao et al.) that are scientifically found to provide medical and health benefits, and which exhibit potential preventive capabilities against certain diseases – are antioxidants like Vitamins C and E.

According to Anderson et al., consuming foods that are rich in Vitamin C and Vitamin E is “associated with lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease”. Nevertheless, this study only accounts for foods that contain such nutraceuticals and do not particularly associate with the vitamins themselves. Scheider et al. claim that antioxidant vitamins like Vitamins C and E possess the ability to substantially reduce “SN dopaminergic neurons in progressive disease”. It also precludes “lipid peroxidation in membranes” (Scheider et al.). This helps in prolonging the deteriorating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.