Mucuna Pruriens

[DBS2018]

I am looking to hear from anyone who has been using the velvet bean as a source of naturally occurring source of dopamine. I was on Sinemet for about 4 years and developed dyskinesia and had to consider other options. After trying a few other medications that also came with almost immediate side effects I started searching for natural options. I have been using this herb for the past 8 years with good results.

[Farooqji]

which herbs are you using

[alexask in reply to Farooqji]

I think he/she means Mucuna. I think more of a bean than a herb. Unless the line in blazing saddles was "More Herbs Mr Taggart!"

[Dee1980]

What dosage of mucuna are you on?

[wombat03]

Hi, my mum has been taking Mucuna recently (few months) - she gradually swapped out her Madopar (previously Sinemet) for the Mucuna, and it has worked well. She still takes some Madopar, early in the day, and in the night if she wakes, mostly because of convenience.

She is on the lowest dose of Madopar, 62.5mg, and only needs a flat teaspoon of Mucuna powder (mixed in juice/water) to replace it, several times a day.

It seems to work quicker than the meds, which has to dissolve the capsule/tablet first.

Are you completely off the meds? You don't need any carbidopa?

Thank you for sharing.

[rhyspeace12]

My husband has been using it in powder for form a couple of weeks. At times he says it helps him feel better.

[Skydome]

I have been gradually replacing my 3 x Sinemet 25/100 a day with mucuna. Presently taking a half Sinemet morning and and another half afternoon, and taking MP rest of the day. The good: faster action with powder form, and a gentler slide into ‘Off’. The not so good: the ‘On’ times are not as emphatic as with Sinemet, ie there are residual symptoms felt throughout. Also a mild but persistent stomach ache. Current MP dosage: 1 heaped teaspoon pure powder every 2.5 hours.

What dosage are you on? Has it changed in the past 8 years? Are you taking any other supplements? Thank you for sharing.

[DBS2018 in reply to Skydome]

I presently take 12 grams of mucuna (Organic Traditions) ever hour starting at 5 am until 5 pm. If you do the math that is a whopping 156 grams a day !! My day revolves around managing this schedule. It was a very long and hard journey getting off of Sinemet about one year before felt like I could get predictable results. Even now if I get it wrong I go into terrible dyskinesia for about an hour while I try to stabilize the amount of dopamine in my brain. I eventually figured out that I had to take a small amount of carbidopa (Lodosyn) about 4-6 mg twice a day to keep the amount of mucuna I had to take to a manageable amount. It is a bean and stomach issues can be expected. I take probiotics and digestive enzymes to help with that problem. With the guidance of a DCM I take a full complement of amino acids, antioxidants, anti-inflammatories and vitamines. My system isn't perfect and has changed over the past 8 years as the disease progresses. I had to resort to the rotigotine patch when the good years of drug free night times had passed. It was a good stretch!! My challenge this past year has been severe withdrawals when my last dose of mucuna wears off at the end of the day. Last July I made the decision to get DBS and my turn should be up within the next six months. I am hoping to turn back the clock by reducing the amount of mucuna I have to take and getting some more good years. It looks like a number of us are following the same challenging path self management. I feel satisfied that have done everything I can. I was just searching for someone who has been down the path a little further and had stumbled across something I hadn't discovered yet. Maybe someone out there has had DBS after being on mucuna for a long time. I hope that I have answered all of the questions, thank you for all of the replies to my post.

[Skydome in reply to DBS2018]

Thank you for replying in such an informative way. I can only imagine that 8 years must have be a long time to manage progressively worsening symptoms with mainly mucuna. I have no idea how you juggle your meal times during the day. I am not familiar with the Hinz protocol, but is your supplement regime based on that? Also, you mentioned that the amount of Lodosyn you had to take was about 4-6mg twice daily, which is small compared to one Sinemet Plus tablet which contains 25mg carbidopa per 100mg Levodopa. Would you know why that is as I can't figure it out myself? Thank you again for sharing what I consider to be a courageous choice you have made.

[DBS2018 in reply to Skydome]

Yes my supplements are from that protocol but not anywhere near the high doses in that study. Yes the amount of Lodosyn I take is very small compared to a Sinemet tablet. I found that I didn't need much to increase the amount of lavadopa I was getting from the Mucuna. Also I believe that the carbidopa is responsible for dyskinesia. I'm not sure if I read that somewhere but my observation was that my dyskinesia got worse with more Lodosyn I took so I had to find a balance between getting enough dopamine to my brain and not causing more dyskinesia. It took a while to figure out. My guess as to why the is so much carbidopa in a single tablet is to ensure the delivery of all of the lavadopa in the tablet. With Mucuna I know that each gram contains 40 mg of lavadopa so 2 1/2 grams which is approximately one packed teaspoon of mucuna contains 100 mg of carbidopa. I did an experiment when I was still on Sinemet where I compared the relief I got from a 100 mg tablet to taking a packed teaspoon of mucuna with a 25 mg Lodosyn tablet and the results were identical.

[DBS2018 in reply to DBS2018]

Oops , I meant to say that there is 100 mg of lavadopa in 2 1/2 packed teaspoons of mucuna not 100 mg of carbidopa ! Sorry 😊

[Skydome in reply to DBS2018]

Thank you for your reply. It’s an interesting observation that it is carbidopa that causes dyskinesia. I shall be watching out.

Please continue to share you journey on mucuna, before and after DBS. 🤓

[marcet]

What brand are you using and what dosage ?

[hercules957]

I have been on the Hinz amino acid treatment protocol for almost 2 yrs. I had dyskinesia on Sinemet. On Mucuna, Mt symptoms are pretty well controlled and I have very little dyskinesia. I take 19 g of Mucuna powder 40% per day (in 5 doses). Standards vary greatly in processing Mucuna, concentration of Levodopa must be known to find the right amount needed. A lot of trial and error compared to conventional medications.

[DBS2018 in reply to hercules957]

Good luck with your journey of taking the management of your Parkinson's into your own hands. Please see my reply to another post to get the details of my adventure. You seem to have it figured out.

[keepsie]

I am taking mucuna for a couple of years already. I was on Rytary (24/95 x 5) and Amantadine (100 x 2). I am trying to switch to Mucuna and amino acids. So far I have managed to gradually replace Rytary (24/95 x 3) with Mucuna (600mg x 3). It works much faster with no side effects.

[SuperMNew]

Look around this site. You will find plenty of information.

[marcet in reply to SuperMNew]

Sorry what site ?

[SuperMNew in reply to marcet]

Go the home page of HealthUnlocked. To the upper right there is a small search window. Type Mucuna there and when you hit Enter, you will see a lot of posts that have been made regarding Mucuna, including instructions from folks that are taking it and asking questions. God bless!

[marcet in reply to SuperMNew]

Thanks

[Greenday]

successfully treated peripheral issues such as apraxia, fast acting, tolerable, no dyskinesia, no side effects (Zandopa)

[tinacat]

Hi all, my husband has been taking levadopa powder for the past year and a half and it worked great until a few months ago when he started stumbling and falling on it, now he is beginning to hallucinate and stutters terribly all while on the mucuna powder. And when it wears off, his muscle go into severe spasms and they paralyze him and make him bedridden. I have to pull him out of bed and straighten his arms hands and legs thats how bad he has gotten since September 1st. He is only 47 diagnosed 3 years ago. Never took drugs and we thought this was working beautifully until now. We are desperate to find relief for him. As of now his only relief is taking more powder which doesn't work for him anymore but it loosens him up fine a short while. Does anyone have any suggestions? This is really terrible