EDITOR’S NOTE: The podcast Chasing Life With Dr. Sanjay Gupta explores the medical science behind some of life’s mysteries big and small. You can listen to episodes here.
The “Shaking Palsy.”
Those are the words Dr. James Parkinson used in an essay more than 200 years ago to group together symptoms and describe a mysterious infirmity afflicting six individuals in London. The British physician was the first to identify and document the condition now known as Parkinson’s disease, a progressive movement disorder. Its hallmark is damage to the dopamine-producing neurons in the brain that can lead to muscle stiffness, slowness, balance issues and a host of other problems.
Dopamine is a crucial neurotransmitter involved in our brain’s reward system. The chemical plays a central role in motivation, as well as executive function (which includes attention, decision-making, multitasking and planning), movement and emotional regulation.
By 2021, public health researchers reported there were almost 12 million cases worldwide. And the number of people living with Parkinson’s is projected to top 25 million by 2050. The disease not only substantially burdens the individual, but also their family, their community and society as a whole.
“We’re now growing as a neurodegenerative disease faster than Alzheimer’s disease — that should grab everybody’s attention,” neurologist Dr. Michael Okun told CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta recently on his podcast, Chasing Life.
Parkinson’s disease is so much more than just a shaking palsy, as scientists have come to learn since 1817, but there is still quite a ways to go in identifying its root causes, understanding more fully the progression of the disease, and even developing a foolproof diagnostic test.
“It becomes obvious, just absolutely obvious, when you see the folks with disease that this isn’t just a disease of dopamine; it isn’t just a disease of the brain. We see it in the gut. We see it in the skin. We see it in multiple organs,” said Okun, who cofounded and codirects the Norman Fixel Institute for Neurological Diseases at the University of Florida, in Gainesville, and is the medical director and medical adviser for the Parkinson’s Foundation. “So, it is super important that we ask the why: Why does it start? Why does it progress? Why does it spread?”
Genetics plays a key role in between 10% and 15% of cases. For many others, Okun said, the underlying cause of the disease might be more mundane and insidious: environmental toxins — via the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and the chemicals with which we regularly come in contact.
“We have such an opportunity now to understand, hey, we don’t have to live in a world where we think it’s inevitable to get Parkinson’s,” Okun said. His latest book on the disease, “The Parkinson’s Plan: A New Path to Prevention and Treatment,” cowritten with Dr. Ray Dorsey, in part explores the associations between the disease and a host of chemicals that quietly assail our bodies.
You can listen to the full episode here.
]
What can you do to reduce your chances of getting Parkinson’s? Okun has a list of 25 tips in his book, and these are his five favorites.
Invest in a carbon water filter for your kitchen sink, Okun said via email.
“A simple carbon filter can reduce the invisible toxicants that sneak into drinking water and may stress vulnerable brain systems,” he said. “Clean water lowers the everyday chemical load your gut and brain must handle.”
These filters can reduce exposure to pesticides and chemicals like trichlorethylene, or TCE, a common chemical used to dry-clean clothes, decaffeinate coffee and degrease metal, as well as other impurities. (In December 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency announced an almost complete ban of TCE, but lawsuits have so far stayed the rule’s effective start date under certain circumstances.)
Use air purifiers both at home and work.
“Removing fine particulate matter from indoor air protects the nose-to-brain pathway that may seed Parkinson’s,” Okun said. “Cleaner air means fewer triggers entering through the brain’s front door.”
Make sure to use an air purifier with a carbon filter designed to remove volatile organic chemicals, or VOCs, such as TCE. Volatile organic compounds are gases that can be emitted from solid or liquid products, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. These chemicals can cause problems such as eye, nose and throat irritation and damage to the liver, kidney and central nervous system, the federal agency said.
Take the time to wash your fruits and vegetables, even if they are organic.
“Rinsing and scrubbing your produce … helps remove pesticide residues that can quietly injure mitochondria over time,” Okun noted. “This simple daily habit lowers the exposure load your brain and nervous system must manage.”
And just as you would when washing your hands, you should rinse them for more than 20 seconds, Okun added.
Keep your body moving
Exercise every day. Regular movement is thought to prevent or delay the onset of Parkinson’s disease — and it is also crucial for people who already live with the disorder.
“Exercise every day, using four 20-minute walks (~7000 steps), or an equivalent routine that keeps you moving throughout the day,” Okun said via email. “Movement wakes up natural dopamine circuits, improves mobility, and may possibly slow symptom progression.”
For those who feel unsteady on their feet, Okun noted that a recumbent stationary bike is a safe and effective alternative.
Prioritize consistent, high-quality sleep to give your brain a chance to recover every night.
“Deep sleep activates the brain’s built-in cleaning system, flushing toxins and helping symptoms improve the following day,” Okun said. “Protecting sleep is protecting brain health, especially when living with or aiming to prevent Parkinson’s.”
Then, when you get up in the morning, enjoy a cup of caffeinated coffee or tea. Research has consistently associated caffeine consumption with a lower risk of Parkinson’s Disease ; it is believed to protect the dopamine-producing nerve cells from damage caused by environmental toxins.
EDITOR’S NOTE: We hope these five tips help you reduce your exposure to environmental and chemical toxins associated with Parkinson’s Disease. Listen to the full episode here. And join us next week for a new episode of the Chasing Life podcast.
