I am starting Sinemet tomorrow...

[Plindrnbs]

What foods should I stay away from while taking Sinemet?? Thanks

[wifeofparky]

Protein interferes with the absorption of Sinemet. Take your meds one hour before or two hours after you eat for maximum benefit.

[Plindrnbs in reply to wifeofparky]

Thank you so much. The Doctor never tells you this!

[wifeofparky in reply to Plindrnbs]

I know. We learned the hard way

[Plindrnbs in reply to wifeofparky]

That's why I REALLY thank you.

[Johnboy46 in reply to wifeofparky]

I learned it from here a year after I was DXed.

[rjpinette in reply to Plindrnbs]

Actually our neuro dr was the one who told us this and has been a GREAT dr for my husband.

[GymBag]

Grapefruit

Do not eat grapefruit

drugs.com/article/grapefrui...

[Plindrnbs in reply to GymBag]

Thank you so much!!

[wifeofparky in reply to Plindrnbs]

Grapefruit and grapefruit juice interfere with the absorption of many drugs

[GymBag in reply to wifeofparky]

too much acid anyway and you need to put sugar on it.

[wifeofparky in reply to GymBag]

I love red grapefruit and with out added sugar but I now avoid it.

[Despe in reply to GymBag]

healthunlocked.com/parkinso......

[Plindrnbs in reply to wifeofparky]

Thank you so much

[Despe in reply to wifeofparky]

It's true, but unless they are contraindicated with GJ consumption, GJ extends PD meds bioavailability. Besides GJ is good for PD.

[Johnboy46 in reply to wifeofparky]

I take a statin for my cholesterol so avoided grapefruit before DX with PD.

[Despe in reply to Plindrnbs]

healthunlocked.com/parkinso...

[WinnieThePoo in reply to GymBag]

I don't think so. Your link didn't confirm that grapefruit juice is a problem and I've never heard of it before. Mind you grapefruit juice needd to be avoided on so many other drugs, chances are you are on one of those, including statins, calcium channel blockers, antidepressants. But not Sinemet. Not unless you have a more definitive source

[MBAnderson in reply to WinnieThePoo]

Reading the link, you see that Albert acknowledges there is no data and, thus, feels it's a deserving subject for study, speculating that CYP3A4 is the unidentified major player and so offers his theory that because grapefruit juice consumes so much CYP3A4, it extends the half-life of levodopa which he feels is a good way to reduce the 'off' cycle time. I think his theory is reasonable and he is probably correct, but why increase your dose of levodopa by altering it's rate of metabolism because then one doesn't know by how much they're increasing their dose. If you need/want more levodopa, take more levodopa, because as you said, the grapefruit juice affects probably all of the other pharmaceuticals PWP take -- which Albert clearly warns people about. (A lot of people tried it and everyone, except me, liked the results and thought it a good idea.)

[Bruceyg65]

Many people find it is still very effective even when taken with meals and that taking it with meals lessens the indigestion. You may want to start off taking it with meals and then as the stomach problems subside you can move to the spacing the other posts recommended.

[Plindrnbs in reply to Bruceyg65]

Thanks!!!

[rebtar]

If your saymptoms are very mild, meals may not interfere with the effectiveness. You can experiment to see what works for you. If protein does interfere significantly with effectiveness, you can leave most of your protein intake for the last meal of the day.

[Plindrnbs in reply to rebtar]

Thanks!!!

[qazwsx11]

Because of the protein absorption issue I eat salads or soups for lunch and the protein in the evening or as snacks on the middle of the active period. Also it takes some time to kick in. 30-45 minutes. If I want to speed things up sometimes I chew the pills before I swallow them.

[andrehypnotic in reply to qazwsx11]

😳

[qazwsx11 in reply to andrehypnotic]

Yes I know some may find this astounding, but if this is what it takes to live a meaningful life, do my job and take care of my family I gladly do it. PD is all about adapting.

[OREOLU in reply to qazwsx11]

Hi mishod, are you working? How long have you benn diagnosed with PD?

[qazwsx11 in reply to OREOLU]

Yes working. 5 years after DX.

[rebtar in reply to andrehypnotic]

They’re actually tasteless and a bit chalky. Not bad at all. I sometimes chew a bit and then swallow with water.

[Plindrnbs in reply to qazwsx11]

Good to know!

[rjpinette in reply to qazwsx11]

Just looked online if you can chew c/l pills or capsules and it said infactically NO do not chew this med.

[qazwsx11 in reply to rjpinette]

You just looked it up on internet, did you 😂

[rjpinette in reply to qazwsx11]

mayoclinic.org

[qazwsx11 in reply to rjpinette]

rjpinette I am getting your point. This is a forum for us to share our experiences. I received this advice by my highly reputable neurologist after I was on sinemet for several years and as expected it's efficacy is reducing. It is a valid technique for immediate release c/l. I am sure you can find many sources to prove me wrong on Internet. For the rest who are out of options they may find this tip helpful.

[rebtar in reply to qazwsx11]

It’s the extended release that’s not good to chew, I believe. A lot of people chew the immediate release form.

[qazwsx11 in reply to rebtar]

Yes that certainly does not make sense. Only for immediate release.

[Moorhen2002]

Hi Plindrnbs,

I have found that taking my sinemet 30 minutes before food or 90 minutes after food works well for me. This advice was given by a Doctor on you tube who was recommended to watch by a fellow member on Health Unlocked

And yes your right even your Doctor, specialist nurse or Neurologist does not tell you about this. Good luck

[Plindrnbs in reply to Moorhen2002]

Amazing that they don't. Thanks

[andrehypnotic in reply to Plindrnbs]

Try finding a Neurologist that suffers with PD🌻

[Dajudge]

I found that the timing of ingestion of the sinemet was more critical than what else I ate. Thirty minutes before a meal proved to be tolerable for me.

DaJudge

[Parkinsonfight]

If you want to recover, check this put pdrecovery.org . I would not take any Pd drug, because all of them try to treat the symptoms -not the cause of the symptoms- and cause the aggravation of the symptoms sooner or later(read the prospectus in the sinemet box) and in the long run cause more harm than good. Search for fast walking on this site. You can find on this site information about supplements which might help you without many side effects( NAC, virgin coldpressed Conocut oil , . Many vitamin deficiencies can cause Parkinson's like symptoms( B1-thiamin , D vitamin - vitamindwiki.com/Parkinson , B12 - b12deficiency.info/what-is-..., other B vitamins preferably in methylated form. Regarding diet I would try ketogenic...with no sugar, try trehalose instead, and last, but not least I would try MMS - Miracle Mineral Solution by Jim Humble, if the cause is infection it helps or ionic colloidal silver - positive charged silver nanoparticles suspension in distilled water(FDA-approved).

Best wishes!