Parkinson’s disease: disgusting treatment discovered

Researchers are constantly looking for better ways to manage the tremors and movement issues that come with Parkinson’s disease.

Recently, a study published in eClinicalMedicine has shown promising results using a treatment that sounds too disgusting.

But it’s worth it because many patients experienced drastic improvements in motor skills.

Scientists have long known that Parkinson’s disease is more than just a brain disorder; it might also be linked to the gut.

The bacteria in our digestive system do a lot more than just help digest food—they might also have a big influence on our brain health. This new study explores whether changing the bacteria in the gut by introducing healthier bacteria from someone else can help manage Parkinson’s symptoms.

The research was carried out at Ghent University Hospital in Flanders. It included 46 patients with early-stage Parkinson’s. These patients were divided into two groups: One group received stool from healthy donors, while the other group received their own stool back, serving as a comparison group.

The interesting part of the study was that the stool was transferred through a tube that went through the participants’ noses and into their intestines.

The researchers then observed them for 12 months to see whose movements improved and whose symptoms worsened.

This is what they found.

1. Patients who received stool from healthy donors showed improvement in their motor skills, which is their ability to control movements.

2. Those who received healthy stool improved an average of 5.8 points on a scale that measures symptoms, while those who received their own stool improved only 2.7 points.

3. The main side effect was temporary stomach discomfort, but nothing the participants could not live with.

This suggests that transferring healthy stool to Parkinson’s patients could improve their movement symptoms. This treatment might help manage the disease by influencing the gut’s health.

It is very likely that this treatment will have to be repeated throughout a patient’s life, but at least we know that it works for 12 months.

Interestingly, for decades, I have helped thousands of Parkinson’s patients halt, often reverse their symptoms using (among other things) methods to improve the gut bacteria (using food not stool). You can do all this at home without my help as we explain here…