Connection Between Polio and Parkinson's Disease

The reason for my research was on the connection between childhood Polio and the diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease later in a Polio victim’s life. What sparked my interest was a statement my grandmother had made recently that she thinks her Polio during childhood caused the Parkinson’s she has now. Some research has shown a connection to family genetics, but there has not been any one else in our family that’s been diagnosed with PD not even her twin brother.

In my research I thought I would link Polio to Parkinson’s, with the Polio being the cause of motor neuron function breakdown eventually causing Parkinson’s later in life, but I was in for a surprise. I found that it may not be what the medical community has thought for all these years and the two may have one common cause. I couldn’t find research to link the two together since both affects different parts of the central nervous system and not everybody who had Polio will get Parkinson’s. The cause of Polio in medical terms is an inflammatory process involving the gray matter of the spinal cord. If the virus affects the spinal cord the patient is paralyzed for good because neurons in the spinal cord cannot grow back. If it only affects the neurons in the muscles then the neurons can grow back leaving the patient temporarily paralyzed. This is where I was hoping to connect the two together because my thought was yes, the body can grow motor neurons in the muscles, but there are fewer of them. Eventually they wear out because they are bigger to over compensate for the loss, the patient develops the tremors which leads into Parkinson’s, but this isn’t so. The medical term for the cause of Parkinson’s is the result of the dying off of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. What does that mean to us in laymen’s terms? Substantia nigra pars compacta, also called black matter, is located in the middle of the brain and houses the dopaminergic neurons. Dopaminergic neurons use dopamine, a neurotransmitter, which helps control movement. So basically, the Polio virus destroys motor neurons and or the gray matter in the spinal cord; and Parkinson’s is when the brain neurons are slowly being destroyed in the black matter. Polio, according to the medical community, is caused by a virus and Parkinson’s is caused by unknown causes.

Polio affects the gray matter in the spinal cord (anterior horn, lateral horn, posterior horn)

Polio can also affect muscle motor neurons

The part of the brain that Parkinson’s affects.

As of 2004, only isolated pockets of Polio remain. These hot spots include areas in Africa, India, and the eastern Mediterranean. Males and females are equally susceptible to polio. Irreversible paralysis, usually in the legs, occurs in about one of every 200 Polio infections.

I mentioned earlier that they may have a common cause. According to journalist Janine Roberts in her investigative report done in 2004, “Polio is a devastating disease; the preferred method for fighting it is vaccination. Yet there is a mass of historic evidence that suggests it is not caused by a virus but by industrial and agricultural pollution.” There has not yet been one shred of evidence that the polio virus crosses the blood brain barrier which would then be found in the central nervous system. The virus is always found in the stomach and fecal matter and most times not shown in patients who were diagnosed with Polio. It also has been proven that it had been around humans for thousands of years and in nature and only reproduces in human throats or guts. These types of viruses are normally totally harmless, since we have become adapted to them. Human infants that live in poor conditions contract the virus from eating dirt, which have not hurt them. Instead the Polio virus helps activate the babies’ immune systems, giving them a stronger resistance to illness. In fact, the children who lived in very clean environments where their parents used insecticides, deodorants and detergents were diagnosed with the so called Polio virus with the paralysis.

Here is a chart done by Dr. Biskind, that shows the rise in production of DDT coincides with the rise in polio. I wish it would have shown before 1945 because there was a rise in production of chemicals just before the start of WWI (1942) which would have correlated better with the steady rise in Polio on the chart few years before 1945. In 1953, when the country was done with the biggest epidemic of Polio in history and medical breakthroughs on a vaccination for Polio was being broadcasted by the news all over the country and the world, Dr. Biskind wrote about the link between pesticides and Polio and Rachel Carson's Silent Spring (1962), help spur on the heated debate about the dangers of DDT this was followed by a phasing out of these types of chemicals through industrial compliance. By 1972, these chemicals were banned by the United States and other developed countries. Another thing I would like to mention is the invention of the vaccination by Dr. Jonas Saulk, his vaccine came on the scene when the Polio epidemic was on the down fall. Some say this is not sufficient evidence that Saulk’s vaccine worked. Now if you follow where DDT is being used today, in Third World Countries, there has also been a rise in Polio. Polio used to be considered by underdeveloped countries only a Western Civilization disease.

The question is often asked by Polio survivors, “Is there a way to prevent getting Post-Polio?” Doctors say no, but they do agree on getting the proper amount of sleep, maintain a well-balanced diet, avoid smoking and overeating, and follow an exercise program. The recommended exercise program is cardiopulmonary endurance training, but no muscle should be exercised to the point of causing ache, fatigue, or weakness this includes daily activities. They suggest to pace yourself and not work to the point of exhaustion. A research done by a student massage therapists stated after eight-one hour massage sessions in a two month period using extremely slow, gentle glides over the body of the atrophied muscles, the post-polio patient reported increase in energy, and a decrease in muscle spasm, joint and muscle pain, and overall fatigue.


“Parkinson Disease affects 1 to 1.5 million people in the United States, with about 60,000 new diagnoses each year. It is rare in people under 40 but occurs in about 1% of people over 60. Men with PD outnumber women by about 3 to 2.” A Massage Therapist’s Guide to Pathology by Ruth Werner

An investigative report done by journalist Mark Wheeler says, “Scientists have been able to prove with animal models and cell cultures that pesticides trigger a neurodegenerative process that leads to Parkinson's disease.” He also explains how Beate Ritz, professor of epidemiology at the UCLA School of Public Health and Sadie Costello, a former doctoral student at UCLA who is now at the University of California, Berkeley “developed a geographic information system–based tool that estimated human exposure to pesticides applied to agricultural crops.” They did phone interviews with the residents of Central Valley that lived there between 1974 and 1999 and recorded the history of each resident to that area and how much estimated exposure they had with the pesticides according to their “information tool” for pesticides used in that area. They reported in the April 15 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology, “That Central Valley residents who lived within 500 meters of fields sprayed with pesticides maneb, paraquat, or both in combination between 1974 and 1999 had a 75% increased risk for Parkinson's. In addition, people who were diagnosed with Parkinson's at age 60 or younger were found to have been at much higher risk because they had been exposed to these pesticides between 1974 and 1989, years when they would have been children, teens or young adults. What also contributed to the hypothesis is the known fact of higher rates of Parkinson’s show up in farmers and rural residents.” Another investigative report by Kagan Owens called “Pesticides Trigger Parkinson’s Disease,” starts out by saying, “With less than one percent of cases caused by genetics, researchers have been looking for the potential risk factors for developing Parkinson’s disease. What they are finding is startling. The epidemiological and toxicological evidence is repeatedly identifying exposure to pesticides, as well as specific gene-pesticide interactions, has significant adverse risk factors that contribute to PD.” What spurred on further investigation was research was being done in the 1980’s doing drug induced Parkinson’s-like illnesses. One study was using a heroin substitute called MPTP, when injected in the brain turned into a new compound called MPP+ thus causing Parkinson’s-like symptoms. Not realizing at the time that MPP+ is also found in herbicides like cyperquat (closely related to paraquat). Parkinson’s like symptoms may also be caused by high exposure to environmental chemicals and drugs, such as certain tranquillisers and high blood pressure medication, inorganic iron, aluminium and carbon monoxide. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has measured 219 chemicals in people’s blood and urine since 1999.

Simply put by Kenneth Olden, Ph.D., former Director of National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), “Genetics load the gun. The environment pulls the trigger.”

My grandpa was around chemicals more than my grandma was, but why doesn’t he have Parkinson’s? People who have been exposed to chemicals may or may not get Parkinson’s or Polio because of genetics. People who get these diseases may lack a certain gene, an antioxidant or enzyme that would help prevent cellular and/or nerve die off. The study I mentioned above with the MPTP showed that it can also cause a genetic mutation interaction with the chemical.
During my research I found one of many letters stating the effects of chemicals in people’s lives (http://www.getipm.com/articles/letters/parkinsons-organophosphate.htm) :

Date: Fri, 05 Dec 2003 12:27:59 -0600
From: "Chris Gregory"
To: <webmistress@getipm.com>
My grandmother, Elizabeth Phillips and her brother Richard Kingsbury were raised on a sheep farm in St. John's, Michigan. Brother and sister worked side by side. Their job was to wash the wool of the herd during sheering time. They used an organophosphate sheep dip. She points out that she never asked what the chemicals they used were, but her father told her it prevented bugs from living in the wool. Both Elizabeth and Richard now suffer from parkinsons disease.
During a recent ranch reunion we learned that five other people who had worked in the wool cleaning, and were not a part of the family had also developed parkinsons.
What scares me even more, because we now know about this, is that I recently learned that the flea dip used on my dogs, is the same organophosphate. How strange that we haven't learned our lessons yet.
Christine Gregory
HHS Chemical, Physical, Earth, and Environmental Sciences
ASIP Team
Junior High Speech Coach
(T) 309-473-2322 (F) 309-473-2323
308 W. Cleveland
Heyworth, IL 61745


If toxins are to blame for Polio, Post-Polio and Parkinson’s then patients need to take a serious look at their disease and take responsibility for their health. From our studies I learned that doctors are not taught about nutrition and other alternative ways to take care of a disease. They do stand behind preventive care, which is eating more fruits, vegetables, and grains; and to cut back on the fats and sugars. If you have a client who is willing to take action and doesn’t want to wait around for a cure, here are some steps to tell your clients to take that have been used by other cultures for centuries:

• Eat only organic
• Switch ALL home products to non-toxic versions or start making your own from vinegar and baking soda
• Eliminate the most common food allergies (nuts, gluten, sugar, and dairy)
• Exercise every day within your limitations
• Go to your local YMCA to use their sauna to help eliminate toxins
• Actively detoxify using herbs and supplements
• Use bowel cleansing routines to maximize elimination (enemas, colonics and herbal formulas that helps with elimination)

Taken from: Easy Immune System Health Blog

Massage can be a huge benefit for somebody with Parkinson’s. Due to muscle pain and rigidity they feel achy all over their extremities. Giving them regular massage will help relieve their pain and give them a better night’s sleep. Studies have shown that patients who get regular massages will help with their tremors and have better muscle performance.

You may need to alter your normal massage session to better accommodate your client with Parkinson’s, and it is also important to remain in close contact with their physician. Sometimes patients are on other medication besides medication for Parkinson’s. For instance they could be on Cumaden, a blood thinner, that makes them bruise real easily; limbs may be paralyzed and have no feeling; or they may have some arthritis. With these patients you will have to think out-of-the box on how you will give a massage. For those whose Parkinson’s has progressed they will not be able to get on a massage table or into a massage chair. You will have to give them a massage in a recliner, wheel chair, or kitchen chair. You may be able to give them some Swedish massage on certain parts of the body like the thicker muscles, upper traps, thighs and calves if they have feeling. Other parts of the body you can give them some Comfort Touch especially in the joint areas and where the skin is thinner and can bruise real easily. You should always communicate with your client during the massage. In my research I found a research study done by the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami, along with staff from the university's neurology department and Duke University's pharmacology department. Here is the study entitled "Parkinson's Disease Symptoms are Reduced by Massage Therapy and Progressive Muscle Exercises” :

Sixteen adults diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, a chronic disease of the central nervous system characterized by tremor, muscle weakness and rigidity, were randomly assigned to receive either massage therapy or progressive muscle relaxation, for 30 minutes twice a week for five weeks.


The massage consisted of 15 minutes in the prone position, focusing on the back, buttocks, ribs, thighs, calves and feet; and 15 minutes in the supine position, focusing on the thighs, lower legs, feet, hands, forearms, upper arms, neck, face and head.


The progressive muscle relaxation consisted of subjects, guided by a cassette tape, tightening and relaxing their muscles while lying on their back.


On the first and last days of the study, urine samples were collected; participants completed self-reports on daily functioning, sleep and fatigue; and physicians evaluated the participants.
The Activities of Daily Life Scale, which measures the amount of daily activities a person with Parkinson's disease can perform, was used by both the physicians and the participants to assess daily functioning.


A 15-item sleep scale was used to gauge subjects' quality of sleep and levels of fatigue, with options ranging from "did not awaken" and "had no trouble sleeping" to "was awake 10 hours" and "had a lot of trouble falling asleep."


Urine samples were collected to determine participants' stress-hormone levels.


According to the physicians and the subjects' self-reports, daily functioning improved for those in the massage-therapy group.


"These data are consistent with previous research showing improvement on activities of daily living following massage therapy, for example, for patients with multiple sclerosis and spinal-cord injuries," state the study's authors. "Together these findings suggest that massage therapy enhances functioning in progressive or degenerative central nervous system disorders or conditions."


The urine samples revealed a decrease in the stress hormones norepinephrine and epinephrine for the massage-therapy group and an increase in dopamine and epinephrine for the progressive-relaxation group.


"These findings suggest that progressive muscle relaxation exercises may increase dopamine levels, which have been associated with both a progression of the disease and a slowing of the disease," state the study's authors.


Both groups reported more effective sleep by the end of the study, but the massage group alone reported less sleep disturbance.


- Source: The Touch Research Institute and the department of neurology at the University of Miami School of Medicine; Duke University Department of Pharmacology. Authors: Maria Hernandez-Reif, Ph.D., Tiffany Field, Ph.D., Shay Largie, Christy Cullen, Julia Beutler, Chris Sanders, William Weiner, Dinorah Rodriguez-Bateman, Lisette Zelaya, Saul Schanberg and Cynthia Kuhn. Originally published in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, July 2002, Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 177-182.


My grandma mentioned during her therapy, after the recovery from Polio, her parents would massage her legs with oil every night before bed. Then every weekend her parents took her to the University in Iowa City for rehabilitation. I wanted to know a little more than what my grandma could recall. I found that Elizabeth Kenny from Australia was the founder of the controversial rehabilitation for Polio called The Kenny Method. Noticing that the Polio patient’s muscles were very rigid and tight she used massage, hot compresses, weights made from woolen blankets for their extremities and rehabilitation of muscular activity by passive movement and then guided active coordination. This method was a lot more comfortable and had quicker results than the methods that doctors used, which was a machine that mechanically straightened the limbs often causing the children to scream out in pain. Was the Kenny Method used in Iowa City? It could have been since Elizabeth Kenny Institute and the Sister Elizabeth Kenny Foundation is in Minneapolis, and during the time period of 1942-1952 there was training to become a Kenny technician and clinics was popping up all over the world. This would have been during the same time my grandma was going through her physical therapy.

These findings can explain all of my grandmother’s health history. Living in a rural area all her life, and being surrounded by fields that were sprayed with pesticides. She had siblings who were much older than her off to the Navy, living in Washington D.C. and in Des Moines, so being the oldest daughter at home; she helped her mom pick berries and wild plums in the road ditches and eating them as they went with all the pesticide overspray still on them. She was the only one in her family that married a farmer. As a mother and wife she raised her own garden close to fields that I know my grandpa sprayed and she also used the “Sevin” pesticide powder on everything. She was a hard worker, she kept a very clean house and used the latest household detergents and deodorants to keep her house looking clean and smelling fresh. Matter of fact, you could eat off the kitchen floor at any given time. She usually worked late into the evening until everything was done around the house. She had no idea to take it easy so she didn’t over work the Polio stricken motor neurons in her muscles.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/parkinsonsdisease.html
http://www.ippso-world.org/ppsinfo/articles/bruno/fatiguetreat.html
Article on Pesticides and Polio: http://www.sparks-of-light.org/polio-cause.html
http://blog.easy-immune-health.com/brain-health-neurologic/is-parkinsons-disease-caused-by-pesticides/#axzz1U0tM2mJ2
Article on Pesticides and Parkinson’s: http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/pesticide-exposure-found-to-increase-89084.aspx
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/parkinsons_disease/parkinsons_research.htm#environmental
http://eap.mcgill.ca/MagRack/JPR/JPR_17.htm
http://www.wellwithin1.com/overview.htm
Diagram of motor neurons: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nervous_system
How does Polio affect the body? : http://answers.wikia.com/wiki/How_does_polio_affect_the_body
How does Parkinson’s affect the body? : http://neuroscience.uth.tmc.edu/s3/chapter06.html
Graph for poisons coinciding with polio: http://articlesofhealth.blogspot.com/2011/03/polio-in-united-states-from-1870-to.html
http://www.freeradicalsmag.com/2009/10/28/polio-marathoner/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substantia_nigra
diagram of substantia nigra pars compacta: https://wiki.engr.illinois.edu/display/BIOE414/Applications+of+the+BIND+System+in+Drug+Discovery
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000755.htm
http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/sal0bio-1
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2821864/
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Us+or+them!%3A+Silent+Spring+and+the+%22big+bug%22+films+of+the+1950s.-a0204868857
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Health/20101026/polio-africa-101026/
http://www.irinnews.org/InDepthMain.aspx?InDepthId=10&ReportId=57932&Country=Yes
http://www.beyondpesticides.org/gateway/health%20effects/parkinson's%20cited.pdf
http://www.whale.to/vaccines/polio1.html
http://pdf.wri.org/pesticidesandimmunesystem_bw.pdf
http://www.integrative-healthcare.org/mt/archives/2007/03/parkinsons_dise.html
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-227X/6/10
http://www.getipm.com/articles/sitemap-articles.htm
Letter about working on a farm using pesticides: http://www.getipm.com/articles/letters/parkinsons-organophosphate.htm
http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/pdfs/uo198.pdf
http://munstermom.tripod.com/PDasMultifactorialOxidativeNeurodegeneration.htm
http://www.sparks-of-light.org/polio-research-docs.html
http://www.neurology.org/content/57/5/790.short
http://aan.com/professionals/practice/guidelines/Neuroprotective_PD.pdf
http://www.sparks-of-light.org/Scobey54-exogenous.html
http://www.health-science-spirit.com/parkinsons.html
http://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/
http://ezinearticles.com/?Parkinsons-Disease-and-the-Benefits-of-Massage-Therapy&id=497291
http://www.physiotherapy-treatment.com/polio-treatment.html
http://www.mnhs.org/library/findaids/00201.xml
http://www.massagemag.com/Magazine/2003/issue101/research101.php
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/post_polio/detail_post_polio.htm#178973172
http://www.pmti.org/pdfs/MTF_Brian_Richmond.pdf

Hours Spent on Pathology Research:
July 20   2 hours   Researched Polio and Parkinson’s connection on the internet
July 21   2 hours   Researched Polio and Parkinson’s connection on the internet
July 22   2 hours   Reading articles I found on the internet
July 23   2 hours   Research pesticides and their effects
July 24   2 hours   Research government websites on pesticides and effects on Polio
July 25   2 hours   Research government websites on pesticides and effects on Parkinson’s
Aug 1   2 hours    Reading articles I found on the internet and some more research
                           On pesticides and if there is Polio epidemics around the world
Aug 1   1 hour    Phone conversation with my grandma
Aug 2   1.5 hours Reading articles found on the web and formulating how I’m writing my
                           Paper
Aug 3   1.5 hours Watched a YouTube Video on Parkinson’s from Parkinson’s Research
                            Foundation with Juan Sanchez-Ramos, MD, Ph.D. on Mitochondrial
                            Dynamics and Parkinson’s Disease
                           Another Video with Dr. Stephen De Graaf on Post-Polio Syndrome
Aug 3   1.5 hours Research on Polio and Parkinson’s caused by toxins
Aug 9   5.5 hours Research on the affects of neurons, research on the affects of pesticides
                           On post-polio, research on the brain, and writing my paper
Aug 10   1 hour   writing paper
Aug 11   3.5 hours Writing paper, looking up diagrams, finding more research on
                              Parkinson’s, phone conversation with grandma
Aug 12   2 hours   Researching and reading on anti-toxins
Aug 14   2 hours   Making brochure
Aug 16   2 hours   Researching anti-toxins
Aug 17   .5 hours   Talked to Jill about my paper at the school
Aug 19   1 hour   Writing, researching and revising
Aug 20   2 hours   Research and reading massage for Parkinson’s
Aug 26   2 hours   Re-reading articles and revising paper
Aug 27   1 hour   Research massage for Polio
Aug 28   2 hours   Research on Post-Polio preventative and massage and research based
                            study for massage on Parkinson’s patients
Aug 28   2 hours  Went to grandma’s house talked more about her conditions and
                            to Grandpa about how he handled chemicals while farming, gave
                            grandma a 50 min. Comfort Touch before dinner
Aug 29   3 hours  Research, reading and writing on genetics
Aug 30   3 hours Research, reading on chelation therapy; revising paper, and typing out
                           my time on the paper
TOTAL 52 HOURS