Is Parkinson's Contagious?

This isn't meant as click-bait. I know it's a ridiculous headline. But as my father has Parkinson's (diagnosed in 2001), it is a real fear that crosses my mind as I try to juggle the three-ring circus of life in my mind. I have two relatively young kids, an exciting new company and a lot of work to do/finances to accrue to pay for this thing called life. I can't have Parkinson's! 

That's a quick window into fear and an active imagination.

According to the National Institution for Health: "Familial cases of Parkinson disease can be caused by mutations in the LRRK2, PARK7, PINK1, PRKN, or SNCA gene, or by alterations in genes that have not been identified."  

So you're saying...there's a chance?

In short, yes...and no. While leading genetic companies like 23andMe continue to research and crunch genes, the answer remain, for now, 8-ballesque: "Ask again later".

So I'll do what the best people I know who have Parkinson's do: breathe in and out, exercise daily, eat well...and take it one day at a time. 

— written by Robert Cochrane