If Mucana is only Levadopa - then where is carbidopa coming from ? Also any one tried using light therapy . PLEASE LET ME KNOW .

[mymomhaspd]

Given that mom is recovering from pneumonia - her daytime sleepiness is really bad and her off times (low energy times more ). . mucana . We just reintroduced Mucana for mom (every alternate dose ) . 1.5tsps total - four doses.

What do folks take with mucana to make it a levodopa plus carbidopa .

I read about tyrosine / 5 htp . Years ago when I was insomniac due to depression- 50mg of 5htp worked good for me . I can add these but do they interact with any meds >

She is taking sinemet, Mirapex, meds for throid etc .

main issues post pneumonia is daytime sleepiness, balance , low energy , issues with walking (too much sitting doesn't help - making her do the bke 30 mins) and incontinence .

As one reader sais her husbands foot has gone inwards 0 same for moms left foot .

Started her on small dose of mannitol and she is also taking coconut oil . (a few months ago ) and plan to up the dose on both .

Apart from that bought a light therapy machine .. 10k lux lights to regulate the circadian cycle. and hopefully help with energy and fatigue .

mdedge.com/clinicalneurolog...

I was thinking of giving the mucana with vitc .. but please help with the cardidopa ??

[Harleybob08]

Hi, I am on a amino acid regime as outlined by Dr. Hinz.

He says that Carbidopa is the main problem in that it destroys the vitamin b6 structure, which in turn starves 300 different enzymes(whatever they are ?). This gives rise to the many and various ailments that we know only too well.

Carbidopa is added to Levadopa as a matter of course, as this is normal requirement for mainline medicine. The only way to get unadulterated LDopa is straight from the Macuna plant. I use 98% pure, as it is the cheapest. Dr. Hinz uses 40%, which is expensive. Raw Mucuna is no use as the LDopa dose is hypercritical, and the percentage purity of raw Macuna varies.

I take 5HTP instead of the Carbidopa, which sorts out the nausea.

If you can afford it, then it's best to go with a doctor, as it's not easy to get the balance right, and there are other ingredients needed to get the best from this protocol.

Best wishes, Peter

[mymomhaspd in reply to Harleybob08]

So are you saying that you don't need carbidopa with mucana .? My mom is taking sinemet and we are alternating it with mucana .

Here is what I ordered .. so is it not good to get a 100% pure

Latin Name: Mucuna pruriens

•Certified Organic

•High quality Ayurvedic Fairtrade Product

•Also known as Kapickachhu

•Contains L-DOPA

•Versatile easy to use powder

•Re-sealable air tight, foil pouch

•100% pure botanical ingredients, absolutely nothing added

[Harleybob08 in reply to mymomhaspd]

Sounds like the correct Macuna. I wouldn't take it with Sinimet though.

[mymomhaspd in reply to Harleybob08]

cant stop her sinement tho .. so like a few folkd trying to alternate .

Doing that and also frequent small dosing helped her dyskinesia multiple years ago - then its been off and on . The side effects of sinemet which are so many and have already affected her worry me - so nringing in this mucana regimen .

[mymomhaspd in reply to Harleybob08]

Does 5HTP have carbidopa ?

[mymomhaspd in reply to Harleybob08]

I like 5HTP as I took it years ago - wanted to start mom on it but afraid of drug interactions . Do we know what to look for as far as that is concerned .

[lempa_nik]

Hi mymomhaspd,

This question--natural replacement of carbidopa--gets asked a lot on this site. For the answer given by Silvestrov, please scroll down to SECOND post by Dumpelkin and click on the two links therein:

healthunlocked.com/parkinso...

[bassofspades in reply to lempa_nik]

the answer I found is EGCG

[mymomhaspd in reply to lempa_nik]

Thank you !!

[mymomhaspd in reply to lempa_nik]

Is the EGCG given with every dose of Mucana ? My mom is still taking 1/4 tablet sinemet and we are alternating with Mucana .. so do we need to do EGCG twice as silverstrov indicated or is the carbidopa she is getting from sinemet enough ? I am confused .

I am thinking of combining the mucana with vit C . She does take her omega 3, so will skip the salmon oil ..

Any known side effects of EGCG ?

[lempa_nik in reply to mymomhaspd]

I am not an MD and it goes far beyond my knowledge or qualifications to advise anyone on the safe use of EGCG. That being said, I will nevertheless run my mouth a bit. You should take these remarks with a grain of salt.

From Silvestrov, the main known risk from EGCG is liver toxicity. Therefore I personally do not take more than one capsule (= 400 mg) a day. Silvestrov mentions his own protective supplements: "For myself, the first 'guinea pig' of the EGCG + therapy, I am not worried about possible EGCG toxicity because I take NAC, alpha lipoic acid, acetyl carnitine, selenomethionine (selenium), vitamin C (which helps detox the liver), DHA omega 3.... I posted this for to inform about the possible dangers of EGCG and offer preventative solutions." (You'll notice that most of these supplements are highly regarded and would be good add-ons to everyone's diet whether s/he has PD or not.)

Before you start your mom on EGCG, it would make sense to have an MD test her liver function to see if she has any "lIver impairments." If he gives her liver a clean bill of health, you might feel safe giving her 1 capsule a day. To be extra secure, you can have her take several of the protective supplements mentioned by Silvestrov. After a few weeks, the MD might check her liver status again to see if there are any adverse signs. If there are none, it is probably clear sailing from there on with a dose of 1 capsule a day.

You also ask: "is the carbidopa she is getting from sinemet enough?" The beneficial effect of carbidopa decreases as you add more levodopa via Mucuna, but the benefit does not suddenly disappear. Various ratios of carbidopa (C) to levodopa (L) have been tried in the 70's and 80's, e.g. 1:10, 2:10, and 1:4. Take an example: suppose you start with a 25/100 Sinemet (25 mg of C, 100 mg of L), a ratio of 1:4. If you now take an additional 150 mg of L from Mucuna, without adding any carbidopa, your amounts of C and L become, respectively 25 mg and 250 mg, a 1:10 ratio. The research indicates that two results will follow: a) a smaller fraction of the L will get into the brain (though the absolute amount will probably increase since you are loading the body with more levodopa), and b) there will be more risk of nausea and/or vomitting. Thus if you can use EGCG or added carbidopa to maintain an "equivalent" 1:4 ratio of C to L, you will gain certain benefits.

[mymomhaspd]

Thank you so much. She hasn't had any nausea thankfully . We take 1.5 tsp of mucana and give it over the day in 4 doses . .. she is also taking NAC, alpha lipoic acid, acetyl carnitine, DHA omega 3.... and now adding vit c to mucana .

Any insight regarding 5htp ? some folks are giving that with mucana .

[lempa_nik in reply to mymomhaspd]

A brief followup on EGCg --

You can google many fine articles on the risks of EGCg supplements. Here for example, are just two of them:

advancedmolecularlabs.com/f...

amazing-green-tea.com/green...

These note that getting EGCg through several cups of green tea a day is safe--it has a track record stretching over millenia; and, indeed, green tea itself has many known health benefits. A cup of green tea can contain a substantial dose of EGCg (" . . . a cup of green tea has 10-50 mg of caffeine and up to 180 mg EGCg.") The latter is comparable to the amount in a capsule of the extract. So, if you want a very safe way to give your mom EGCg, let her drink 1-2 cups of green tea (assuming the caffeine is not a problem for her. For example, some PDers, like myself, find that caffeine worsens our tremors. ) But try not to combine green tea and/or its extracts with "tylenol-type products," (acetaminiphen), which can amplify the risk to the liver.

[mymomhaspd in reply to lempa_nik]

Thank you so much !!

She takes green tea every morning , and we give her moringa /or dandelion in the evening (both have great benefits) will see if they can add another cup of green tea