Parkinson’s and Protein

[Farooqji]

“I explored diets and after realizing I was generally doing worse if I ate a lot of meat, I looked into vegetarian diets…. What a difference it makes for me.”

—GAIL J., PWP

You may have heard about protein being a no-no in the Parkinson’s diet. This is only partially true. The problem is that because levodopa is an amino acid, it competes for absorption with other proteins. This is why eating a meal high in protein could reduce the likelihood of your body efficiently absorbing levodopa.

If you have problems with mobility that interfere with activities or have noticed that food seems to interfere with how well levodopa works, a diet lower in protein may help. To start, you could try reducing your overall protein intake to the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of .8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight (.36 grams per pound).

Timing when you eat protein is important as well. If you eat most of your protein at your evening meal, you will increase the amount of time you are mobile during the day. But, if you evenly distribute your protein throughout the day, you will be less mobile in the evenings.

You and your doctor will have to determine which option is best for you and your needs, but in the meantime, here are three ways to incorporate protein into your mealtimes so that it won’t interfere with the effectiveness of Sinemet.

• Take your Sinemet about 30 minutes before meals.

• Eat foods that are high in protein with large helpings of grains, fruits, and vegetables.

• Eat your carbs and veggies at lunch and leave meat and fish for your evening meal.

• If you are taking a dopamine agonist (e.g., ropinirole or pramipexol) you won’t need to change your protein level.

Finally, those who take the MAO-B inhibitor selegiline should eat with moderation (but not eliminate) foods that contain high concentrations of tyramine, such as cured, air-dried, and fermented meats or fish, aged cheeses, most soybean products, yeast extracts, red wine, tap beer, and sauerkraut.

“I tell my patients if there is a question about protein interfering with the absorption of levodopa, take your dose of Sinemet, eat a hamburger, and see if the Sinemet works. In some patients with protein sensitivity, I tell them to try to take their protein at night.”

— Dr. Abraham Lieberman

[Smittybear7]

What about vegetable protein?

[curlscurls]

Thanks for the explanation of protein. I'll have to play around with that. Curious whether it's only meat protein or also applies to plant sources such as beans.

My movement disorder clinic said the mao-b inhibitors don't require any of the special diet. They b is for breaking through the blood brain barrier. And as a result all those diet requirements are for mao-a which processes in the body.