Effects of dietary supplements, foods, and dietary patterns in Parkinson’s disease: meta-analysis and systematic review of randomized and crossover studies
Abstract
Background Diet significantly impacts Parkinson's disease (PD) with plausible biological hypotheses. Although the thesis has been explored in several human clinical trials, no current meta-analyses or reviews summarize the results. We examined the effect of intervention of dietary supplements, foods, and dietary patterns in treating PD. Methods We conducted a meta-analysis and systematic review of randomized and crossover studies published between 1989 and 26 June 2022, searching from PubMed, Embase, Medline, Scopus, Cochrane Library databases, and Chinese databases. Twenty-four studies were included in this review. Results The meta-analysis results show that dietary supplements intervention significantly increased the quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI) [MD = 0.02, 95% CI (0.01, 0.02), p < 0.00001]. Dietary supplement intervention does not significantly affect the total Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) score and six-min walk test (6MWT) distance. We did not find evidence that dietary supplements or food intervention may minimize the UPDRS III score. However, systematic review results indicated that the Mediterranean, low-fat, and ketogenic diets significantly reduced the total UPDRS score; low-protein diets meaningfully mitigated motor symptoms. Conclusions This meta-analysis result displays that diet and diet supplements had a very modest but statistically significant impact on QUICKI but no effect on motor and non-motor symptoms in PD. The systematic review concludes that dietary patterns intervention may positively attenuate the overall symptoms of PD, including both motor and non-motor symptoms.
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A meta-analysis and systematic review of 24 studies found that dietary supplements or food intervention did not affect the total UPDRS score, or 6-min walk test.
“A meta-analysis and systematic review of 24 studies investigating the role of dietary supplements, foods, and dietary patterns in PD found that dietary supplements or food intervention did not affect the total Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) score, or 6-min walk test.”
From The gut–brain axis in early Parkinson’s disease: from prodrome to prevention (2025) · cites this paper as [185]
The same study identified that dietary patterns intervention, namely Mediterranean, low-fat, low-protein, and ketogenic diets, produced clinically meaningful improvements in motor and non-motor symptoms.
“However, this study identified that dietary patterns intervention, namely Mediterranean, low-fat, low-protein, and ketogenic diets, produced clinically meaningful improvements in motor and non-motor symptoms [185].”
From The gut–brain axis in early Parkinson’s disease: from prodrome to prevention (2025) · cites this paper as [185]
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- Authors
- Wu, L., Chu, L., Pang, Y., Huo, J., Cao, H., Tian, Q., & Gao, Q.
- Affiliations
- Ningxia Medical University (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Gao, Qinghan
- Venue
- European Journal of Clinical Nutrition
- Published
- 2024-02-20
- Volume
- 78
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 365-375
- ISSN
- 0954-3007 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-5640
- OpenAlex
- W4391955622
- Cited by
- 16
- References
- 48
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 3
- FWCI
- 1.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (82060596)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Neurology › Parkinson's Disease Mechanisms and Treatments
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutritional Studies and Diet
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
- Keywords
- Parkinson's disease, dietary supplements, dietary habits, Mediterranean diet, low-fat diet, ketogenic diet, low-protein diet, QUICKI, insulin sensitivity, motor symptoms, non-motor symptoms, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale, 6-minute walk test
- MeSH terms
- Dietary Patterns, Diet, Humans, Parkinson Disease, Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic, Cross-Over Studies, Dietary Supplements
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