CARBIDOPA FOR MUCANA ??

[mymomhaspd]

Whats the Carbidopa to be given with Mucana?? Mucana has been something we gave mom a few years ago , but that was before she had the fall which left her completely bed/wheelchair bound . I have been fighting a lot of battles as the doctors almost gave up when they should have been trying to help.

Long story short, i am trying to reintroduce Mucana for energy , wakefulness , less side effects etc . last time i remember mixing mucana powder with strong concoction of green tea - cause someone said EGCG is a carbidopa . So questions again on efficiacy of taking Mucana alternately with sinemet , but whats the carbidopa that we need to take with it .

Its been a tough few years and the current covid situation has of course been crazy. Praying for everyone to be safe .

++Irony is that she took a lot of simenet earlier and then over the years when we learnt about the disease and the terrible dyskinesia she was getting from it - we switched to lesser meds - now she is taking 1/4 tablet of 25/100 sinemet - 9 times a day . So that is 2.14 of 25/100 sinemet . Is she always on or always off no - its like good times and bad times .. sometime no energy and at nite she will talk .. I am an engineer and trying to find the optimal sine wave to keep her on times up with a combination of sinemet and mucana .. PL give your feedback

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[WinnieThePoo]

Sorry to hear of your mum's condition. You will almost certainly be best off getting a regular carbidopa/levadopa medication instead of mucking around with Mucuna.

But to try to answer your question...

First carbidopa is a chemical. It is a type of decarboxylase inhibitors. Green tea is not a carbidopa. It is a natural alternative decarboxylase inhibitor. A decarboxylase inhibitor stops some levadopa being converted into dopamine in the body and leaves more of it to get to the brain. Benseraside is another chemical decarboxylase inhibitor.

It is not clear how well green tea works for this purpose and it would vary with different teas.

You can reasonably predict how a chemical like carbidopa would work. You need a 1:4 ratio. So for a 60mg levadopa Mucuna capsule you need 15mg carbidopa

I don't know where you would get that.

Hence it would be much simpler to use Sinemet

[maoieph]

What I did was reduce my levodopa/carbidopa(sinemet) intake to half and replaced it with mucuna. The carbidopa is needed so that the levodopa can pass the blood-brain barrier. I think it has been more than a year and I haven't increased my doses and it felt better than just taking sinemet alone. Less sleepiness, more mobility, and a more lively face. I experimented with a few mucuna brands and finally found one that really works.

[Natulia in reply to maoieph]

Maoieph, if you don’t mind to share, what brand of Mucuna better works for you?

[Petty1953 in reply to maoieph]

What brand did you find that works?

[mymomhaspd in reply to maoieph]

How much do you take? Irony is that she took a lot of simenet earlier and then over the years when we learnt about the disease and the terrible dyskinesia she was getting from it - we switched to lesser meds - now she is taking 1/4 tablet of 25/100 sinemet - 9 times a day . So that is 2.14 of 25/100 sinemet . Is she always on or always off no - its like good times and bad times .. sometime no energy and at nite she will talk .. I am an engineer and trying to find the optimal sine wave to keep her on times up with a combination of sinemet and mucana ..

[Toogood]

What brand and how much do you take please.

[enricomoraca]

what are the brands of the mucuna with which you felt comfortable?

[Hidden in reply to enricomoraca]

i ordered 90% pure in bulk....5lbs at a time then since it comes mostly from thailand i had it tested for purity and safety then used it. cheers.

[Rosenmu]

I have been on mucuna pruriens for 3 years, why take it with Carbidopa? Mucuna is L dopa in a more natural form. Do you give nay other supplements and how is her diet?

[Hidden]

you can find a compounding pharmacy and hve you dr script you for carbidopa comensurate wih your mucuna dose. cheers!

[Debgiffen]

I have been experimenting with mucuna and am currently taking 1/4 tablet of 25/100 Sinemet with 2 capsules of Now brand Dopa Mucuna every 3 hours at 8:00, 11:00, 2:00 and 5:00. I take this at least 30 minutes before eating because it seems to work best on an empty stomach. This is working quite well for me but I have only been doing this for 3 weeks. I don't like taking Sinemet because I also get terrible dyskinesia but the 1/4 tablet is working fine for now.

I tried drinking green tea with the mucuna but it didn't work as wel as the Sinemet combination. I never thought to try different teas as Winnie wrote.

My goal is to find a combination that works without Sinemet. I can get by without Sinemet/mucuna but am currently doing hard physical work in my garden so the extra dopamine boost allows me to be more productive. My biggest PD complaint right now is pain and stiffness. Of course, some of that may be from the yards of garden material I have been shoveling lately.

I tried powdered mucuna but could not find a dose that worked. Once I have more time, I will try the powdered form again but right now the Now brand capsules are more convenient.

I also take high dose b1 which has been a lifesaver for me. If your mom is not taking b1, I highly recommend she try it. Please check out my website about b1 therapy at b14pd.com

[mymomhaspd in reply to Debgiffen]

Thank you so much for a detailed response. Wont the excess levadopa - i.e. Sinemet combined with Mucana give her more dyskinesea - she can sometimes get dysk even with just qtr of 25/100 ? I am thinking of trying it - or would it be better to just replace a dose with mucana ? Also in the powder form its difficult to fig out the starting dose , so i will start with 1/4 teaspoon and keep my fingers crossed .

Saw this study - mdsabstracts.org/abstract/t...

The single use of synthetic levodopa or mucuna, when separately used, caused intense motor dyskinesias. The addition of green tea and mucuna to a conventional treatment with commercial levodopa-benserazide induced a remarkable and sustained improvement of motor fluctuations (reduction in off-periods and in dyskinesias) and non-motor complications (mood). This benefit was sustained over 3 months through the combination of synthetic levodopa with mucuna and green tea.

[mymomhaspd in reply to Debgiffen]

Please let me know . Thank you !!

[Debgiffen in reply to mymomhaspd]

I don't know anything about the powder dosage. The author of that abstract has a book on mucuna puriens that might be useful. You can read the first chapter here: researchgate.net/publicatio...

If your mom's problem is fatigue and low energy, you should seriously consider the high dose thiamine therapy. It has helped many PWP on this forum and beyond.

[mymomhaspd in reply to Debgiffen]

yes, already ordered - how much do folks take . I think i ordered the one from vitacost - 500mg

[Debgiffen in reply to mymomhaspd]

See the question about recommended dosage under common questions here: b14pd.com/index.php/faqs

[Smoothjazz]

Have tried carbidopa with mucuna for my husband but did not work very well. Carbidopa/ levodopa alone was not working or giving terrible side effects...dyskinesia and muscle spasm. Mucuna taken alone was not giving enough “on” time. Together, mucuna and carbidopa/levopdopa seem to work well. Green tea is helpful but am not sure how much to use each day.

[mymomhaspd in reply to Smoothjazz]

Does together mean -in the same dose or during the course of the same day. Sorry, its a lil confusing .

[Smoothjazz in reply to mymomhaspd]

It’s ok...we are still trying to find our way after almost 15 years with this condition...we take 1/2 tablet carbidopa/levodopa ER which is same as Sinemet extended release every 2 1/2 -3 hours equal to about 2 1/2-3 Sinemets a day...with each one we take 5/8 teaspoon of Iyasa brand USDA Mucuna (we were taking Zandopa but switched because of the saccharin sweetener)...we started with 1/4 teaspoon Mucuna powder 4 years ago and worked our way to 1 teaspoon but had to reduce because my husband lost weight...constant trial and error...your doctor can prescribe Lodosyn or Carbidopa w/o levodopa for you to use with mucuna as our doctor did but it did not work as well for us as the sinemet/mucuna combination...we have a question for all using 1/4 tablet sinemet...is that control release or regular release sinemet?...thinking of reducing from 1/2 to 1/4 to control dyskinesia...thank you to all and stay safe!

[Despe in reply to Smoothjazz]

Smoothjazz,

My husband is taking 1/2 Sinemet with 2 NOW capsules 3 x day. Works really well. Vanderbilt MDS prescribed Lodosyn to take with whatever MP we want to. He never forced meds on him and he was very knowledgeable about natural levodopa (Fava beans and MP).

[Smoothjazz in reply to Despe]

Thank you for the reply ...have thought about taking mucuna pills...doctor says that the powder is better...would like to know of more doctors that are knowledgeable about mucuna because there are not that many

[Despe in reply to Smoothjazz]

You're right, not many MDs are familiar (at least they pretend they are not), so I was pleasantly surprised when a major university MDS welcomed our natural levodopa preference and tried to help us.

We prefer the specific brand NOW or PARADISE capsules as they are whole seed extract rather than just levodopa in most powders. Besides levodopa, there are other substances in the seed which are neuroprotective.

[Smoothjazz in reply to Despe]

That is interesting...we would like to know where we can find MDS that supports use of mucuna...does Now Dopa cause any dyskinesia?

[Despe in reply to Smoothjazz]

No he hasn't experienced any dyskinesia, but he was diagnosed in March 2018 so he still enjoys his honeymoon.

[mymomhaspd in reply to Despe]

You dont see more dyskinesea with the Sinemet MP combo ? I am scared of that .. as mom takes 14 of 25/100 tab every 1:45 mins to minimise dyskinesea

[mymomhaspd in reply to Smoothjazz]

You dont see more dyskinesea with the Sinemet MP combo ? I am scared of that .. as mom takes 14 of 25/100 tab every 1:45 mins to minimise dyskinesea

[Despe in reply to mymomhaspd]

No, dyskinesia at all. I am afraid that your mom's dose of 14 Sinemet tablets every 1:45 min is way too high. When was she diagnosed? I believe people take a different med for dyskinesia, not Sinemet. Perhaps you need to talk to your neurologist unless he/she is the one who recommended this dose.

[Smoothjazz in reply to mymomhaspd]

How long ago was your mom diagnosed?...Is she taking extended release (ER) or regular release Sinemet?...my husband had to switch from regular release to extended release because there is less less dyskinesia with extended release...

[mymomhaspd in reply to Smoothjazz]

She was diagnosed a doz yrs ago. We had no idea about PD then and the docs put her on the highest dose of meds .. she is taking half of that now. I just spoke to my dad and he said she got more dyskinesia with ER, which doesnt make sense. Now 1/4 tab of 25/100 is what she gets , dyskinesia is less but who knows if it is really optimal to maintain her 'on time' . Its a struggle . I just started thiamine therapy .

[Pnyldy]

Not sure any of us answered your question. Are you looking for Lodosyn? I have no experience with it. But, my movement disorder specialist said it could be taken with Mucuna...

[mymomhaspd in reply to Pnyldy]

I think i have a gen idea on how i would like to proceed , thank u !!

[Despe in reply to Pnyldy]

Lodosyn is carbidopa.

[mymomhaspd]

To everyone who asked - i am using organic mucana from indigo herbs

[mymomhaspd]

Adding the mucana to sinemet made her seem ok at times and more dykinesic at other times .