Dietary Factors in Parkinson's Disease: the Role of Food Groups and Specific Foods

Purpose: The association between self-reported past food intake and Parkinson's disease (PD) was investigated in a case-control study of men and women aged 40-89 years.

Methods: Newly diagnosed idiopathic PD cases were ascertained from neurologists, and from outpatient and pharmacy computerized databases, at the Group Health Cooperative (GHC) clinics in the Puget Sound region of Washington state. Control subjects were chosen from the GHC patient roster and had no reported history of diagnosed neurodegenerative disease. Dietary data were obtained from structured questionnaires.

Results: An increase in PD risk with increasing intake was noted for foods that contain animal fat and foods containing vitamin D. Intake of fruits, vegetables, meats, bread and cereals, or foods containing vitamins A, C, E, or iron was not significantly related to PD risk. Vitamin use, in general, was also not found to be related to PD risk, although a significant trend of increasing risk of PD was noted for intake of vitamin A supplements.

Conclusions: Although these data support previous findings of no association of past intake with most food groups and PD risk, they confirm an increased risk of PD associated with foods containing animal fat.