Parkinson's Disease - Risk Factors

Risk Factors

Age

The average age of onset of Parkinson's disease is 55. About 10% of Parkinson's cases are in people younger than 40 years old. Older adults are at higher risk for both parkinsonism and Parkinson's disease.

Gender

Parkinson’s disease is more common in men than in women.

Family History

People with siblings or parents who developed Parkinson's at a younger age are at higher risk for Parkinson's disease, but relatives of those who were elderly when they had the disease appear to have an average risk.

Race and Ethnicity

African- and Asian-Americans appear to have a lower risk than Caucasians.

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Possible Protective Factors

Both smoking and coffee drinking have been associated with a lower risk for PD.

Smoking and Nicotine Replacement. Cigarette smokers appear to have a 40% lower risk for Parkinson's disease, indicating possible protection by nicotine. This finding, of course, is no excuse to smoke. Studies on nicotine replacement as a treatment for Parkinson’s have been few and have not provided any strong evidence that nicotine therapy provides benefits.

Coffee Consumption. Some studies have indicated that the risk for PD in coffee drinkers is about 30% lower than for non-coffee drinkers. In a 30-year study of Japanese-American men, coffee consumption was associated with a lower risk for Parkinson's disease, and the more coffee they drank, the lower their risk became.

Review Date: 06/18/2010
Reviewed By: Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

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