It has long been known that smokers are slightly more protected from Parkinson's disease — symptoms of the disease appear on average later than those who do not smoke. A new study has shown that coffee and aspirin also have a similar effect. Don't reach for a cigarette, coffee or aspirin, though, scientists warn. «/wp-content/uploads/35f46d13c7a4f42433b618283d955ff0.jpg» /> 
Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's disease, affecting more than 7 million people worldwide. It is characterized by emotional and cognitive impairment, severe tremor, gait changes, and increased muscle tone. It most often develops in old age, but there are cases of early Parkinson's. Men are diagnosed with the disease 1.5 times more often than women.
The Fox Insight Study was funded by the foundation of actor Michael J. Fox, who has been suffering from Parkinson's disease since the age of 30. Scientists from the Institute of Neurogenetics at the University of Lübeck recruited about 36,000 patients from the United States with this disease. Volunteers filled out questionnaires detailing their lifestyle, habits, symptoms, and medications.
Scientists divided the participants into several groups based on how long they smoked, drank coffee, or took aspirin. They analyzed the results and compared the age of onset of the first signs of Parkinson's disease in all groups.
For those who smoked more than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime, the mean age of onset of symptoms was 63.5 years, while for non-smokers it was 60.8 years. The number of cigarettes smoked per day was also associated with delayed signs of disease, although this difference was not significant. But there's a big caveat: Smokers with Parkinson's had worse motor symptoms compared to non-smokers. In addition, this group of patients is more likely to experience depression, anxiety, memory problems and pain syndrome.
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Coffee drinkers also develop symptoms with a delay of 61.9 years versus 59.4 years for non-drinkers. The protective effect was potentially enhanced depending on the number of cups drunk and the duration of consumption. In addition, coffee has been associated with less severe movement disorders.
When scientists assessed the possible protective effect of various anti-inflammatory drugs, the highest rate was found in aspirin — a popular drug was associated with a five-year delay in symptoms. Patients who took at least two tablets per week for 6 months or more had a median age of symptom onset of 64 years. Those who did not take aspirin — 59.1 years.
Scientists noted that these results help to improve understanding of Parkinson's disease and may influence the creation of an effective therapy to delay and slow its progression. But this is still far away, since the exact mechanisms of this protective effect are still unclear. Patients should not take these findings as a guide to action, especially when it comes to smoking. The harmful health effects of smoking far outweigh any potential benefits in Parkinson's disease,” the study authors said.