Ultra-fat diet may help fight Parkinsons

NEW YORK, May 15 (UPI) -- An experimental ultra-fat diet treatment at New York's St. Luke's-Roosevelt Medical Hospital Center may help fight Parkinson's disease.

The diet, tried on five patients, included recipes like eggs baked with cream cheese, small portions of fish cooked in butter, oil and mayo, and ground beef mixed with so much heavy cream that it ran a light brown, USA Today reported Monday.

The results included modest improvements in balance, tremors and mood. However, they are too preliminary to prove an effect, said researcher Theodore VanItallie at the hospital.

VanItallie says the trial ultra-fat diet and other recent studies hint that a diet nearly devoid of protein and carbohydrates might temper symptoms of several neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's and Lou Gehrig's disease, the report said. At the same time, researchers are aware of higher risks of strokes and diabetes from such a fat-rich diet.

The findings were published last year in the journal Neurology.