Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether food choices are associated with patient-reported Parkinson’s disease (PD) severity over time.

Background: Several traditional epidemiological studies have identified an association between food intake and risk of PD diagnosis, although few studies have attempted to evaluate the role of diet and PD progression.

Method: This was a cross-sectional analysis of 1795 individuals with idiopathic PD were surveyed using a food frequency questionnaire. Only participants providing complete data were included in the analysis (N=1527).  PD severity was measured using the Patient-Reported Outcomes in PD (PRO-PD) rating scale. Regression analysis included adjustments for age, gender, income, and years since diagnosis.

Results: There were 23 foods with a p-value below 0.05. The foods associated with fewer PD symptoms over time were fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, nuts and seeds, non-fried fish, wine, olive oil, coconut oil, and fresh herbs. The foods associated with greater PD symptom severity over time were canned fruit, canned vegetables, soda and diet soda, fried foods, ice cream, yogurt, cheese, milk, beef, chicken, pork, pasta, frozen vegetables, and consumption of fluids from plastic bottles.

Conclusion: The foods associated with reduced PD progression could be considered the foundation of a Mediterranean diet and are similar to those foods previously identified as protective against PD diagnosis. While many of the foods associated with faster progression are congruent with previously published epidemiological data (e.g. beef, dairy, soda) this is the first study to identify an association between canned fruits and vegetables, fried food, frozen vegetables, and pasta. Further research is warranted to determine whether intake of these foods actually accelerate accumulation of PD symptoms or whether they are a surrogate for other, yet-identified variables.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/association-between-diet-parkinsons-disease-progression/