Vegan vs American diet

Researchers in Finland have discovered what could be an important clue to what drives Parkinson’s disease (PD). Their new study has shown a reduced abundance of the Prevotellaceae bacteria family in the gut microbiome of PD patients compared with healthy control persons.

Dr Filip Scheperjans

Although the new findings only “scrape the surface,” they “give us good reason to dig deeper,” said lead author Filip Scheperjans, MD, PhD, Department of Neurology, Helsinki University Central Hospital, and Department of Neurological Sciences, University of Helsinki, Finland.

If further research verifies that PD is caused by a diminished number of Prevotellaceae in the gut, boosting levels of these bacteria might slow the progression of the disease, or even prevent it.

Their findings are published in the March issue of Movement Disorders.

“Intriguing” Theory

“It’s an intriguing theory,” said Dr Scheperjans. “I think it’s something we will be looking at…