Increased Added Sugar Consumption Is Common in Parkinson's Disease

Abstract

Objectives: There is limited information about the dietary habits of patients with Parkinson's Disease (PD), or associations of diet with clinical PD features. We report on nutritional intake in an Australian PD cohort.Methods: 103 PD patients and 81 healthy controls (HCs) completed a validated, semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Food and nutrient intake was quantified, with consideration of micronutrients and macronutrients (energy, protein, carbohydrate, fat, fibre, and added sugar). Participants also completed PD-validated non-motor symptom questionnaires to determine any relationships between dietary intake and clinical disease features.Results: Mean daily energy intake did not differ considerably between PD patients and HCs (11,131 kJ/day vs. 10,188 kJ/day, p = 0.241). However, PD patients reported greater total carbohydrate intake (279 g/day vs. 232 g/day, p = 0.034). This was largely attributable to increased daily sugar intake (153 g/day vs. 119 g/day, p = 0.003) and in particular free sugars (61 g/day vs. 41 g/day, p = 0.001). PD patients who (1) experienced chronic pain, (2) were depressed, or (3) reported an impulse control disorder, consumed more total sugars than HCs (all p < 0.05). Increased sugar consumption was associated with an increase in non-motor symptoms, including poorer quality of life, increased constipation severity and greater daily levodopa dose requirement.Conclusions: We provide clinically important insights into the dietary habits of PD patients that may inform simple dietary modifications that could alleviate disease symptoms and severity. The results of this study support clinician led promotion of healthy eating and careful management of patient nutrition as part of routine care.

Nutritional Intake and Gut Microbiome Composition Predict Parkinson’s Disease

“…Briefly, 56.3% of the PD participants were male with a mean age of 67.1 years (range 35–88, standard deviation [SD 12.2]), whilst two thirds of the HCs were female, with a mean age of 62.4 years (range 18–90, [SD 15.6], p = 0.001). All relevant demographic, clinical parameter and nutritional intake information has been reported previously for this cohort ( Lubomski et al, 2020a , b , 2021a , b ; Palavra et al, 2021 ) and is reproduced in Tables 1 , 2 and Supplementary Data , where relevant to this study.…”

“…Information regarding socio-demographic factors, lifestyle, clinical management and comorbidities was collected from validated surveys, as previously reported ( Lubomski et al, 2020a , b , 2021a , b , 2021c ; Palavra et al, 2021 ). A comprehensive Food Frequency Questionnaire ( Barclay et al, 2008 ), was completed by all participants.…”

“…A comprehensive Food Frequency Questionnaire ( Barclay et al, 2008 ), was completed by all participants. Dietary questionnaires allowed for extrapolation of macronutrient intake, including energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, sugar, fiber, moisture, and vegetarian status ( Palavra et al, 2021 ). Patients completed validated clinical questionnaires assessing upper gastrointestinal symptoms [Leeds Dyspepsia Questionnaire (LDQ) ( Moayyedi et al, 1998 )], constipation severity and gut motility [Rome-IV criteria ( Sood and Ford, 2016 ) and the Cleveland Constipation Scale (CCS) ( Agachan et al, 1996 )], QoL [PDQ-39 ( Jenkinson et al, 1997 ) and the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) ( Ware and Sherbourne, 1992 )], physical activity [International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) ( Hagstromer et al, 2006 )], mood [Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) ( Beck et al, 1961 )], cognitive function [Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) ( Nasreddine et al, 2005 )], chronic pain severity (Visual Analogue Scale; McCormack et al, 1988 ) and non-motor symptoms [Non-Motor Symptoms Scale (NMSS) ( Chaudhuri et al, 2007 )].…”

Serum short-chain fatty acids and its correlation with motor and non-motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease patients

“…Nutrient intake was supposed to regulate the generation of SCFAs and modify PD pathogenesis [22,23]. It was reported that PD patients had a high intake of dietary fiber, which is the source of SCFAs [24].…”

Cognitive Influences in Parkinson's Disease Patients and Their Caregivers: Perspectives From an Australian Cohort

“…Our findings support increased physical activity being positively associated with cognitive function and a reduced likelihood of having MCI or PDD. Encouragement of PD patients to remain socially active, seek help if feeling depressed or anxious, adopt depression coping strategies, maintain physical exercise, eat a healthy diet and engage in cognitive training interventions have been proposed as a multidisciplinary approach to optimising NMS and cognitive impairment in PD (36,(56)(57)(58)(59). These interventions would be more beneficial at the MCI stage of disease, making early identification of these patients critical.…”