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Has anyone read the May 5th TIME Magazine article on Addiction? (Pages 69-76). If you haven't read the article in its entirety, I'd encourage you to go aout and get a copy. It's much too long to quote here, but the key point seems to be, (snip) >Why do certain substances have the power to make us feel good (at least at first)? >Why do some people fall so easily into the thrall of alcohol, cocaine, nicotine and other >addictive substances, while others can, literally, take them or leave them? > >What ties all these mood altering drugs together, they say, is a remarkable ability to >elevate levels of a common substance in the brain called dopamine. The article goes on to say that current brain-imaging technology (I believe they're referring to the PET scan)" can be used to track the rise of dopamine and link it to feelings of euphoria." Later on, the article states, >At a purely chemical level, every experience humans find enjoyable--whether listening >to music, embracing a lover or savoring chocolate--amounts to little more than an >explosion of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens...." (snip) >Dopamine, like most biologically important molecules, must be kept within strict >bounds. Too little dopamine in certain areas of the brain triggers the tremors and >paralysis of Parkinson's disease. Too much causes the hallucinations and bizarre >thoughts of schizophrenia. I don't think the article is complete or thorough enough to draw any conclusions about Parkinson's and addiction, and that's not at all the point I want to make. In fact, I am very definitely NOT saying PWP are potential addicts. However, I do wonder whether this dopamine-euphoria connection can help better explain the depression that frequently seems to accompany PD in the later years. I thought I'd toss this out on the net and see what the rest of you think. Also, I wonder if our resident experts have any thoughts on this. Margie Swindler cg for Dick, 52/15 [log in to unmask]