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Short Summary: How environmental chemical exposures affect neurodegenerative disease and health.
About the guest: Gary Miller, PhD is a Professor of Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University. His research bridges pharmacology, toxicology, and neuroscience to explore neurodegeneration, particularly Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.
Note: Podcast episodes are fully available to paid subscribers on the M&M Substack and everyone on YouTube. Partial versions are available elsewhere. Full transcript and other information on Substack.
Episode Summary: Dr. Gary Miller talks about neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, exploring their age-driven nature, early detection challenges, and environmental risk factors such as pesticide exposure and head trauma. They discuss the emerging field of exposomics—studying lifetime chemical exposures—and its potential to uncover links between pollutants, diet, and disease, while highlighting protective factors like caffeine and nicotine, and the role of technology in advancing prevention and treatment.
Key Takeaways:
- Neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s & Alzheimer’s worsen with age, but early intervention could slow progression & improve quality of life.
- Parkinson’s symptoms often appear after significant dopamine neuron loss, but subtle signs like handwriting changes or gait issues might be detectable earlier.
- Environmental factors, including pesticides & air pollution, increase neurodegeneration risk, while caffeine and nicotine surprisingly lower Parkinson’s incidence.
- The exposome—total lifetime exposure to chemicals—offers a new lens to study health, revealing how pollutants & diet interact with our biology.
- Ultra-processed foods & common chemicals like PFAS (in packaging) raise exposure levels, but simple steps like air filters or less processed diets can help reduce risks.
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