Can Childhood Stress Cause Parkinson's Disease?
Yes, early life stress may increase the risk of developing Parkinson's disease (PD). Early life stress may include maternal separation, malnutrition, or physical harm, although it may also be more subtle, encompassing brief experiences, falls, or psychological trauma. Some of these stressful experiences in early life may influence brain development and increase susceptibility to neurodegeneration [1]. This may happen through adaptation of the release of cortisol, the stress hormone, or by altering DNA expression patterns.
Another mediating factor between early life stress and PD is depression, where early life stress increases the risk of depression, and depression increases the risk of developing PD [2]. This connection may be mediated by the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, specifically by the reduction of dopamine in the substantia nigra and basal ganglia [2, 3].
Therefore, there are several plausible mechanisms through which early life stress may cause PD, but early life stress is not strictly predictive of a PD diagnosis later in life.