A while ago the following article was posted on the forum.
Simply crushed Zizyphi spinosi semen prevents neurodegenerative diseases and reverses age-related cognitive decline in mice
(Department of Translational Neuroscience, Osaka Metropolitan University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-4-3) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_...
My pwp and I decided to conduct a test based on the study. This is a recap of our experience.
A little background: My pwp was diagnosed 3 years ago. His primary symptoms are slowness, loss of dexterity and power in his movements, difficulty with some complex mental tasks, and, recently, occasional freezing and drooling. Initially he suffered from serious anxiety, but that resolved when he began B1 therapy.
He does not use any prescription meds or any non-prescription source of dopamine. He takes several supplements, including a probiotic, B1, B12, NAC, curcumin, vitamin C, and a multivitamin. He has never had trouble sleeping, but I believe his sleep is not usually restful. He does Rock Steady Boxing three times a week.
The B1 therapy, used for 2 years, seems to have slowed his progression but he can’t take it for more than a few weeks now without worsening symptoms. He is down to 25 mg of HCL B1 once or twice a week.
I have had essential tremor for about 40 years and have had recurrent insomnia for that same amount of time. This past year I’ve developed peripheral neuropathy. Because of these symptoms, I decided to take part in the test as well.
In mid-November, we began our test, attempting to duplicate the Japanese study as closely as possible. When we began, we had no method for converting the dosage for mice into one for humans, so we decided to use the amounts recommended for sleep, which was 1 gram, or ½ teaspoon of powder.
We purchased wild jujube seed that had been “cooked” (boiled to make the seed usable for tea). We rinsed it, dried it, and ground it in a coffee grinder until powdery. Then we used a tea strainer to eliminate any coarse particles. To optimize freshness, we ground a new quantity each week and stored it in a covered glass container in the refrigerator.
To use, we mixed ½ teaspoon of powder with a little water or yogurt and took it about an hour before bedtime. We did this for 5 days each week and then skipped two days before starting again the next week.
The mouse test took place over four weeks. After four weeks, we analyzed our experience. Our sleep seemed to improve quite a bit. It became deeper and going back to sleep after waking in the night was much easier. My pwp usually awoke 2 or 3 times in the night for trips to the bathroom. That number changed to 1. However, we did not notice any change in Parkinson’s or essential tremor symptoms.
Because mice and humans differ in metabolism and because we are still uncertain as to the most effective dosage, we decided to extend our test for another four weeks. We have just completed the full 8 weeks.
I have not noticed any change in my essential tremor. My thinking seems a bit sharper and faster to me.
My pwp has not noticed any improvement in movement or freezing. However, there seem to be two other changes. He has always been a dedicated reader of books, but for the past three years his interest in reading has ceased. Except for the occasional article or short book on Parkinson’s, he has not touched a book. Now, however, his interest is rekindled. He seems to be curious again and has recently spent several hours each day learning about AI. He has also become more assertive in subtle ways. Are these changes due to jujube seeds? We are wondering.
I would appreciate hearing from anyone else who has tried the seeds. Have you experienced any changes? If so, what protocol did you use?
Any opinions as to whether or not we should continue would also be appreciated.
The jujube seed we used was labeled
Semen Ziziphi Spinosae (Wild Jujube Seed) (Sheng Zao Ren)
Big thanks for your report! You are getting some improvements so I see no reason to discontinue.
One half teaspoon of Jujube seed powder weighs about 1.4 grams. I have been using uncooked jujube seeds, also ground in a coffee grinder, and taking 250 mg twice daily. This amounts to about 1/3 of your dose. I've not observed any changes. Since you are getting good results I plan on increasing my dosage accordingly.
I have only been using the jujube seed powder, which I also grind in my coffee grinder, for 3 1/2 weeks. I make a suspension in warm water of 750 mg and drink it about an hour before bedtime. I have not at this point recognized a change in my primary symptom, tremor, but like you I have noticed a difference in my sleep quality in that it’s quite a bit easier for me to fall back asleep when I’m wakeful.
I do track my sleep using an Oura ring, which seems to have a decent reputation despite not being a medical device and which seems to me to be fairly accurate for my sleep. In any case, I can compare the results before I started using the seeds and after, and they at least verify my sense that my sleep efficiency has improved.
Given your results, I’m considering increasing the dosage somewhat and perhaps dividing it between morning and evening. I plan to keep going for eight weeks and see what happens. Thanks so much for sharing your experience!
I ordered some ground powder from amazon which took 40 days to be delivered. During that period I took a full spectrum jujube fruit which (I figured the full spectrum included seeds - Swanson verified by emailed it does.)
No ill effects, I am taking some new stuff and not sure which is giving me positive benefits.
The powder makes my tongue sting a little so now putting in a capsule (320 mg 3 times a day). I have been taking with meals.
I posted about this in reply to the first message here on the subject. In traditional Chinese medicine this is the most widely used herb for insomnia and some of the conditions that can give rise to it, usually falling under the category of "calming the shen or spirit." I, too, have severe recurrent insomnia and essential tremor and all of my symptoms are worse when my sleep is poor, so I have relied on this herb and the formulae that contain it for decades. But I do not have a PD dx. My grandfather had PD and I believe I have some early signs.
if you search for semen zizyphi spinosae americandragon.com, you will find an overview of the herb and the common formulae available commercially that contain it. If you click on the Notes, you will find:
"It is more appropriate for palpitations and insomnia due to loss of communication between the Heart and the Kidneys with confusion, loss of concentration and forgetfulness. "
TCM looks at the body differently from Western medicine. Many Ziziphus formulae will be at better match for some than for other patients. As a result, although many of the herbs used to address Parkinson's might fit a majority, not everyone will have the same results. Some of the above symptoms addressed by Z. will be familiar...but they are not the only PD symptoms. So a combination of herbs would be the TCM approach.
People here, the amazing people, are so skilled at research and with complex information, it's probable that with the help of websites like American Dragon (I have no connection to them ) and the many excellent handbooks/guides on Chinese herbal formulas, you could figure out one that would address your particular PD symptoms for yourself.
if I can help, happy to answer questions if I can. I volunteered at the Quan Yin acupuncture clinic in San Francisco where I was also a client. I first received acupuncture for a torn rotator cuff in 1990. Because it did not treat only that but the whole person, my disabling menstrual cramps were alleviated for the first time in 20 something years. A nice side effect!
There are community acupuncture clinics where the cost is usually around $20 a visit. I have benefited from them greatly in many ways. Many of these also have at least a small stock of herbal formulas
I mention again that there are acupuncturists who specialize in treating PD and most also prescribe herbs for it. that way you can let them do the years of studying!
Hello ~ I was wondering if you had any “favorite” TCM books that would be good starter books and that would be helpful for PD that you wouldn’t mind recommending?
The Web That Has No Weaver by Ted Kaptchuk is a classic. he is now on the faculty of Harvard doing research on Chinese herbs and also on the placebo effect and how to best harness it for healing. There is also Chinese Tonic Herbs by Ron Teegarden--recently put back in print but still with a kind of 80s vibe. That one and Lily Choi's "heal yourself with TCM" both have solid information about using and preparing herbs.
if you do a search for using Chinese herbs to treat PD, there are a good number of studies on the Lancet, Pub med, Science Direct. They tell you the names of the formula most often used. I was interested to find one investigatingcats claw, often used to treat long Covid, chronic tick borne diseases, etc., in the West. It's widely used to treat PD in China. In TCM it was called the shaking disease...
I am sorry to be an ignoramus about using a smart phone. I have tried repeatedly to figure out how to post website URL here and cannot. I spent an hour last night trying various things after looking up directions and I don't know if it's settings on my phone or what. I just tried again to no avail
However!
if you do a search for using cats claw to treat PD in TCM, you will see a good article by Dr. Andrew WEIL as well as the studies I referred to above. The results of the trials and studies are positive and they detail the and how they measured them.Again, the herb is not used by itself but along with other herbs Chinese medicine. The studies contain the names of the formulae end of the herbs used. They are often given in both the Chinese name and the Latin.
briefly, the results of using cats claw as part of a combination of herbs is positive, and multiple human studies detail which symptoms and by how much people improved.
My HWP main symptom has been REM sleep disorder. Starting this June we got COVID, and it caused some major physical problems. He started C/L - then cut the C/L, then got off C/L and went back to Mucuna. All this made his REM kick up big time. By December, we continued with Melatonin 10 mg, then added a 10mg patch. About this time I saw the article on Jujube. I got a 4oz liquid through Hawaii Pharm. REM sleep is now not a problem. He sleeps most of the night, (as do I ;). Unfortunately, my sleep isn't all that great - once I wake up, and need to use the bathroom, getting back to sleep is a problem. SO I am now also taking the Jujube juice before bed, and I am also getting more consistent sleep with out bathroom breaks! We have been using it consistently for about a month, and we both are sleeping better then we have in years. The dosage is 1mg and we put it in pomegranate juice.
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Anyone find C/L ineffective? 
PD is relentless 
Neurologist Examination
How many mg of Vitamin B1
