Parkinson’s disease doesn’t play by the same rules for everyone, and there is no clear winner.
The Fight Against Parkinson’s Disease
There are clear differences in how Parkinson’s, a neurodegenerative disease that affects 1.2 million Americans and nearly 12 million people worldwide, impacts men and women. Although the underlying causes are similar, the biology behind the disease is not. No two people experience the disease in quite the same way when it comes to motor (physical) and non-motor (mental) symptoms.
Parkinson’s disease is caused by low dopamine levels in the brain. This happens as nerve cells responsible for making this chemical slowly die off over time, changing the way the body controls muscle movement and influences changes in a person’s emotional response.
The average age of diagnosis for Parkinson’s is around 60 to 65, but men tend to develop the disease about 2.2 years earlier than women. Both men and women who develop Early-onset Parkinson’s are diagnosed before the age of 50.
In rare cases, fewer than 1 in 1000, Juvenile Parkinson’s disease usually starts before the age of 21, and it is most often linked to inherited gene mutations that control how the brain cleans up waste, forcing dopamine cells to break down earlier than normal.
When it comes to the effects of Parkinson’s disease, which of the two sexes is tougher? Is Parkinson’s harder on men than on women, and who faces the tougher fight?
For Men: Parkinson’s Comes On Fast and Strong
Men are more likely to develop the disease sooner than women. It’s up to twice as common, and men are subject to having stronger tremors, balance problems, trouble sleeping, and experiencing a faster overall physical decline than women do. Men also experience a slightly higher mortality rate than women.
As the disease starts to take hold, men are more likely to experience rapid loss of motor skills, with more severe balance and gait problems, higher rates of freezing of gait, an increased risk of falling, a greater risk of declining memory and thinking skills, and an increased risk of dementia. Studies have shown that men begin adulthood with lower levels of dopamine reserves than women do, making men more susceptible to the effects of Parkinson’s as they get older.
For Women: The Symptoms Are Often Overlooked
For women with Parkinson’s, the symptoms develop more slowly and aren’t as pronounced at first. While women may not see the physical changes as quickly as men, the non-motor symptoms like depression and anxiety, pain, fatigue, constipation, and trouble sleeping often take hold early and can go unnoticed or be mistaken for symptoms of stress or aging.
In the fight against Parkinson’s, women have an extra edge in the fight against the disease: it’s estrogen. This hormone offers women significant protection against the symptoms of the disease, including inflammation and dopamine neuron loss, which helps delay the onset of the disease in many cases until menopause. But once estrogen levels begin to decline, that protection fades, making women more vulnerable to the long-term accumulated effects they were exposed to.
Women are also sensitive to the changes that medication brings, which can cause strong side effects, including jerky, twisting movements, emotional changes, and sudden swings between feeling too stiff and too shaky, which can make symptoms difficult to control.
The Sexes and the Environment: The Hidden Battlefield
“We are all a product of our environment in some ways, and the way our bodies react to the conditions of our surroundings,” said Dr. Ray Dorsey, a noted neurologist and co-author of the book, The Parkinson’s Plan: He has argued that “Parkinson’s disease is largely a ‘man-made’ condition driven by environmental toxins, rather than genetics alone,.” Growing research supports this view.
Researchers have found that long-term exposure to chemicals like trichloroethylene can damage the parts of the brain that produce dopamine. These solvents have been widely used in the automotive and aerospace industries, and are used in everyday products like adhesives, sealants, and degreasers. For hobbyists who were model-makers, or used aircraft adhesives, or worked on electronics repair, long-term exposure to these chemicals may have increased the risk of neurological damage from the use of products containing this chemical.
Perchloroethylene has been used as the de facto dry cleaning solvent since the 1930s. It has also been widely used in brake cleaners, metal solvents, and in chemical manufacturing. Over time has been linked to groundwater contamination and long-term health concerns for many communities that live near large-scale dry cleaning and other industrial sites that use this chemical. Because of the scope of the environmental impacts this chemical has played, new rules by the EPA are slowly phasing this chemical out, forcing the industry to use safer alternatives, many of which are already being adopted.
Pesticides like organophosphates, a type of chemical that kills insects by shutting down their nervous systems, and Paraquat are some of the most toxic chemicals still being used today on farms and for weed control. The chemicals can drift in the air and settle into water and soil, eventually making their way into nearby neighborhoods.
In fact, a recent JAMA study highlighted by the Parkinson’s Foundation found that people who live near golf courses where these chemicals are used face a higher risk for developing Parkinson’s, turning recreational areas into potential health risks.
Everyday Uses
Many of the products we use don’t have clear warning labels. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, only products designated as “hazardous household substances” require precautionary labeling. These routine products are used in our homes, garages, bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and in the yard. Not every chemical we are exposed to, or use day-to-day, is going to give someone Parkinson’s disease. But how we use these products matters. Using proper protective equipment, storing chemicals safely, following disposal guidelines, choosing safer alternatives, and researching product ingredients can all help reduce long-term exposure and health risks.
The Winner?
So, who is stronger in this fight against the effects of Parkinson’s disease? Neither sex prevails, but when you step into the ring with the disease, some rounds will be harder than others to overcome.
In this long fight against a determined opponent, research, resilience, and willpower give people the strength to stay on their feet and the chance to keep winning, one day at a time.
Unless noted, all media by Chris Denny/Chat GPT
