A chronic, slowly progressive disorder of the central nervous system characterized by hypokinesis (impairment of movement); muscle weakness, rigidity, tremor (“shaking palsy”) unsteady, shuffling gait, and an expressionless look on the face(Parkinson’s mask).First sign is usually a hand tremor which is present at rest, but may disappear during purposeful movement. Speech is monotonous and handwriting is cramped.
Muscle cramps and pain often occur.
- Liver damage
- Nutritional Deficiency
- Environmental Toxins
- Food allergy
- Reduced dopamine levels in central nervous system
- Encephalitis may precede disease
- Oxidative damage to nerve cells
- Excessive iron concentration in the sub-stantia nigra
Trauma, syphilis, tumor, drugs, heavy metal poisoning, chronic states of inflammation.
Parkinson’s disease and Parkinson’s like symptoms may occur following encephalitis, trauma, cerebrovascular disease, or drug usage, or may accompany syphilis or tumor. These cases, however, cannot explain the large proportion of Parkinson’s sufferers who show no apparent cause for their dis-order.
Most cases show a clear abnormality in the brain. The areas of the brain affected are globus pallidus and substantia nigra. This damage interferes with central nerve connections responsible for visual and proprioceptive information essential for normal postural maintenance and movement.
On the biochemical level the brain has been found to show a reduced level of dopamine,usually found in high concentration within the substantia nigra. The drug L-dopa has been used therapeutically. This precursor to dopamine, and helps relieve some of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, such as slowness in movement, rigidity, and tremor. Other biochemical factors are probably involved, also since L-dopa does not correct all the disease’s symptoms.
These are some authorities that suspect that brain cells are damaged by toxins, either environmental or those from pharmaceutical or recreational drugs, food additives or pesticides that are not detoxified by the liver. Poor liver function therefore is a possible contributing factor in these cases as is toxic overload.
Some promising results come from the clinically application of strict naturopathic principals to Parkinson’s disease. Like some other difficult to understand degenerative disease, a drastic lifestyle change and internal detoxification often have shown remarkable results. With so much to gain and absolutely nothing to lose, the naturopathic
Approach given below should be tried for at least 6 months to 1 year, or longer. The only side effect will be improved health.
The treatment of Parkinsonism is best managed by or with a neurologist, or well-trained internist and the patient must be referred if the symptoms persist or worsen.
Physical Therapy helps improving muscular strength, flexibility and balance with subsequent functional improvement in individuals with PD. However physical activities require some specific characteristics. Exercises focusing on strength training, balance, aerobic conditioning as well as the use of external cues during gait can result in overall improvement in motor performance and quality of life related to PD patients' health.
It was found that those patients who took part in the exercise program three times per week showed significant improvement in tests of mobility and coordination, compared to control subjects
