Mystery Solved: Why Parkinson’s Patients Become Compulsive Gamblers

Scientists have learned what turns those with Parkinson’s disease into compulsive gamblers.

It’s all about the drugs.

From Business Insider: 

In a small study, a group of newly diagnosed Parkinson sufferers who were not taking any medication, were asked about their compulsive behaviour and the results compared to a similar group of people who were healthy.

It was found that one in five of both groups showed compulsive behaviour.

The findings from University of Pennsylvania  were published in the journal Neurology.

Specifically, the drug in question is levodopa. 

"We've known for some time that these behaviours are more common in people taking certain Parkinson's medications, but we haven't known if the disease itself leads to an increased risk of these behaviours," said study author Dr Daniel Weintraub.

"These results provide further evidence that impulse control disorders that occur in people with Parkinson's disease are related to the exposure to the dopamine-related drugs, not just the disease itself," he said.

"More long-term studies are needed to determine if the 20 per cent of people who have some symptoms of these disorders are more likely to develop impulse control disorders once they start treatment for Parkinson's."

- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com