Consumption of coffee, tea and cigarettes are noted for their Parkinson's disease risk reduction and their varied chemical components have conferred neuroprotection in PD lab models. I added 22 minutes to the original video and included information about the best (natural) MAO-b inhibitors; the possible reason why (in one study) 6 cups of black tea a week conferred a 71% reduced risk of acquiring PD. Black and green tea as prebiotics???....the conversion of trigonelline in green coffee to niacin in roasted coffee. What roast of coffee produces the most amount of niacin? The relationship between Parkinson's disease, melanoma and red hair.....and other information.
i previously wrote a thread about short chain fatty acids and discovered this information after investigating the various biological effects of black tea.
Nicotine patch, does it help slow progression? My husband had a Functional Medicine appointment at Cleveland Clinic. They wanted to start with the gut. When I mentioned nicotine patch, the physician said "no."
I have read about Niagen for a couple of months and concluded I do not need to take the supplement. A HIV patient with parkinsonism contacted me and is taking Niagen and it helped with his energy levels, but did not help to improve his bradykinesia or other PD symptoms. Niagen's closest competitive product is nicotinamide and it has 80 years worth of studies supporting its use and since it's properties (and applications) are well known, I am sticking with (the cheaper) niacinamide. Niacinamide is great for raising energy levels, longevity, osteoarthritis, the skin, anxiety, killing pathogens.....possibly even cancer:
Nicotinamide Blocks Proliferation and Induces Apoptosis of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Cells through Activation of the p53/miR-34a/SIRT1 Tumor Suppressor Network
Because it inhibits Sirt1 (and Niagen does not) this means Niagen (probably) does not have anti-microbial activity like nicotinamide. Plus Sirt1 inhibition makes niacinamide a possible therapy for Frederich's ataxia (and Niagen is not a viable therapy). The debate over nicotinamide therapy is ongoing:
I am glad to hear you are using niacin because it relieves inflammation from binding with the receptor GPR109a - Niacin Receptor 1.
From the final paragraph of the Discussion (end of the article):
"......there is no published data that demonstrates the neuroprotection of niacin in any PD model. Both niacin and niacinamide are sources of NAD. Niacin but not niacinamide acts as an agonist of GPR109a. Therefore, although both niacin and niacinamide are neuroprotective, their mechanisms appear to be different."
Thank you!! You are indeed our PhD of Parkinson's and we appreciate the sharing of your research immensely. I am also interested in whether you have changed your personal supplement protocol based on the information in this outstanding video, as I am replicating your previous posted protocol for my husband and curious about any changes you make. Is there a separate email/internet address to contact you directly? Thanks EElaine
re; your previous post, do you take multi vit/min capsules, make a smoothie, or how do you not get stomac complaints? are you still taking mucana p? how goes it?
I have a cast iron stomach and the only substance that which affects it is milk/ice cream, etc.. because I am lactose intolerant. Rather than take a multi-vitamin I researched the most effective vitamins/minerals/amino acids for Parkinson's (and parkinsonism disorders) and take full doses of them. Most multivitamins, like the one I randomly chose, have smaller doses (especially the crucial vitamin B vitamins).
Both thiamine, riboflavin and P5P/pyridoxine are a measly 4 mg each and B12 is 150 mcg. I take 100 mg of thiamine, 100 mg riboflavin, 25 mg P5P and 5 mg (5,000 mcg) of methylcobalamin/B12. I take the majority of my vitamins at the biggest meal of the day with 10 mg of piperine to amplify their effect.
Years ago I was exposed to multiple chemicals and developed a parkinson's-like disorder. I was fortunate to be able to reverse it with dietary supplements. My father had PD and I was not impressed with the therapy, hence, when I became sick, I fell back on my knowledge of vitamins, amino acids, etc...to improve my health. I do not have a progressive neurological condition but if I stop taking my supplements I start to become sick again - the supplements counteract inflammation, etc. I have to take mucuna twice a day otherwise I become stiff. I am fully functional but if I do not sleep well I shake in the morning. The constant reminder something is wrong with me is the muscles on my left shoulder will not stop twitching (24/7) - muscular fasciculations. All-in-all I am fine but am always researching various supplements to improve on my therapy.
hum, sounds like you developed a malabsorption problem, have you reak abram hoffer's orthomolecular psycology? about pows that were starved in jap prison camps (abused too-stressed) and required huge supplement\ation, especially niacin, I think it was.
what I learned about mucuana says your getting your levodopa from this herbal.
I want to go on mucana, haven't notified neuro yet, expect he will tell me totake a walk.
where do you buy your's, what dosage do you take, what do you take it with, (powder or pill) . they're talking grams not mcg. must be huge.
I also read that levodopa does cause neuro damage whereas mucuna does not?
When I took niacin 300 mg/day I flushed like a Christmas tree for the first week or 2 then this effect faded - unless I would have kept ramping up the niacin dose to perpetuate the flushing effect. This effect is hypothesized to be a way to quit smoking by taking progressively larger doses of niacin:
FLUSH NIACIN USED AS ORAL SUPPLEMENTATION FOR TREATING WITHDRAWAL IN A SMOKING CESSATION PROGRAM patents.google.com/patent/C...
Piperine is used as a bioenhancer to many herbs including curcumin because it is not well absorbed in the gut. Antibiotics are also combined with piperine because it lowers the dose and lessens side effects. The best known antibiotic/piperine combination is rifampicin - tuberculosis antibiotic:
I have suggested that other people take 10 mg of piperine with each singular 2,000 mg dose thiamine (2 doses a day) because thiamine will have greater bioavailability and increased clinical effect.
My dose of mucuna is lower than most on this site and I need to take less of it. I take about 800 mg/day of 50% levodopa or 400 mg/day levodopa + 400 mg other mucuna seed ingredients. I have tried every possible combination of mucuna and all the results are the same so I take a simple 50% powder rather than combining it with EGCG, salmon oil, etc....like my consistent response to any form of Coq10, I go the cheapest and simplest route with mucuna pruriens.
consider i'm very dumb about these numbers. i'm being fed pro levocarb 100-25 and apolevocarb 200---50 evenings.thats mg. is that low? still have speech problems, balance, writing, and i'm still dragging my leg. I don't think I've got pd.
my right arm is loosened, but I think that was spontaneous, nothing to do with levocarb. my veins on my right arm aren't bulging like they used to, but it's still colder temp thaan the other arm????
hope you don't mind this questioning but i'm stuck in francophone village; with plenty enough people hobbling around, but most of them are like resigned. mainly because they have been told it's heridtary.
I recently learned that's moire complicated than thet. will be quoting from glenn rothfield's book soon. don't have much time, thaw is on.
before I go, I'd like to say that my main complant is fatigue, when I get up in the am i'm feeling half competent, my speech is improved, etc,. for about half an hour. what's that about?
I had a long work week hence my slow response to your query.
"i'm being fed pro levocarb 100-25 and apolevocarb 200---50 evenings.thats mg. is that low?"
Whenever you add a decarboxylase inhibitor, carbidopa in your case, it lowers the dose of levodopa by 80% and if you were to translate your doses into mucuna pruriens (MP) doses the MP doses would be much larger. In one study the equivalent dose of 40% levodopa mucuna pruriens to sinemet was 11 grams - 11,000 mg a day MP (4,480 mg of levodopa!!!). Decarboxylase inhibitors were added to increase brain and central nervous system dopamine levels while simultaneously decreasing the side effects of pure levodopa, primarily nausea, and cramping. The apolevocarb dose is larger because it is a time released form of sinemet and your doctor does not want you to wake up in the morning in the 'off' mode - unable to move until you get another dose of levodopa.
"I get up in the am i'm feeling half competent, my speech is improved, etc,. for about half an hour. what's that about?"
I think it is the result of the time release sinemet you are taking prior to bed then its effect wares off.
My father woke up and it took him several hours to get his feet to move. He shuffled and struggled to walk until the first dose of 250/25 sinemet took effect. In late stage Parkinson's disease took 4 doses of 250/25 sinemet every day.
I am not sure what you diet is but if you are consuming a high protein diet the protein will inhibit the effectiveness of any levodopa-producing supplement, including sinemet. Many people on this site have noted better success by eating a vegetarian or lite Mediterranean diet. Right on the sinemet label they state this issue:
"The patient should be advised that a change in diet to foods that are high in protein may delay the absorption of levodopa and may reduce the amount taken up in the circulation."
"Pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), in oral doses of 10 mg to 25 mg, may reverse the effects of levodopa by increasing the rate of aromatic amino acid decarboxylation. Carbidopa inhibits this action of pyridoxine; therefore, SINEMET can be given to patients receiving supplemental pyridoxine (vitamin B6)."
Taking B6 pyridoxyl 5 phosphate, the best form of pyridoxine, is recommended, as is taking niacin, because sinemet/madopar cause deficiencies of both pyridoxine and niacin. For example, here is an article from 1979 which states:
Niacin depletion in Parkinsonian patients treated with L-dopa, benserazide and carbidopa
"The urinary excretion of "-methyl-nicotinamide, a product of nicotinamide
nucleotide metabolism, is considerably reduced in patients treated with dopa
alone or in combination with an inhibitor of peripheral dopa decarboxylase,
to as low as 40% of the control value. This means that many of these patients
could be classified as 'at risk' of niacin deficiency, even if not frankly
deficient."
Meaning if you take levodopa alone or levodopa plus a decarboxylase inhibitor, it will cause a niacin deficiency.
"Patients treated with dopa plus a decarboxylase inhibitor, but not those treated with dopa alone, also show a reduced excretion of xanthurenic acid, and an increased excretion of kynurenine, as would be expected after inhibition of the kynurenine pathway, and possibly indicative of marginal vitamin B6 deficiency."
250 mg/day of niacin has been shown to relieve inflammation caused by GPR109a, Niacin Receptor 1, and improve parkinsonian symptoms. The downloaded PDF has the full text explaining the dosage etc.
Taking 250 mg of standard niacin at one time will cause flushing and there are ways to mitigate this effect. Take 100 mg niacin with breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. The flushing effect will take place but it will fade by weeks end. It is a nuisance but not a health risk. Niacin comes in many forms and ONLY niacin and not nicotinamide/niacinamide nor NAD-r/Niagen will relieve inflammation from the GPR109-a receptor.
There is no need to read the entire article I am posting, it is long and involved, but it states:
"However, activation of GPR109A in epidermal Langerhans cells is directly responsible for flushing."
"Because Gpr109A is specific for the acid and not the amide (85, 92), one would not expect NR to cause flushing."
The 'acid' form is nicotinic acid/niacin; the amide form is nicotinamide/niacinamide; the NR form is nicotinamide riboside/Niagen. So niacin can be taken with either niacinamide or Niagen because they have different effects in the body.
There are other hazards to taking L-dopa and they include:
"This review deals with the results showing the relation between vitamin B12 deficiency and neurotoxicity of homocysteine and nitrite (a metabolite of nitric oxide) in Parkinsons patients treated with levodopa (L-Dopa)."
"Furthermore, levodopa (L-Dopa) treatment of PD results in hyperhomocysteinemia as a consequence of L-Dopa methylation by catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT). Therefore, higher dietary intakes of folate, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6 might decrease the risk of PD through decreasing plasma homocysteine."
Methylcobalamin best form of B12, methyltetrahydrofolate acid is the best form of folic acid.
And,
Modest increase in plasma homocysteine follows levodopa initiation in Parkinson's disease.
"Patients who doubled their daily levodopa dose experienced tHcy elevations from 9.5 to 11.1 micromol/L (P = 0.05). Levodopa reduction, agonist treatment, and entacapone treatment did not have significant effects. Levodopa elevates tHcy and lowers vitamin B12 concentration to modest degrees."
non;motor, no trembling i assume. i don't have the shakes, appear when i strain.
so my dose is the same as your dad's who has advanced pd?
levocarb only makes 20% of dopamine bio-available. i'm also being leached by this medication for several b vitamins that neuro doesn't think to mention.
has anyone at least come up with supplements geared to pd ers?
i had nice piece off beef steak the other day and feel better.
if you go out to work, you're doing something right.
dinner is tough enough, without trying to function with one hand tied behind your back. my right hand is affected, i'm all thumbs, clumsy.
i'm conflicted, because i'm taking these med that are leaching me for nutrients with minimal benefits, if any.
i can't decide if this condition is metabolic provenance, bio-chemical or genetic, but i believe we have systems aboard that moderate these things, we just have to nurture them, not compromise them. the best i can do is to protect these systems from pharma.
thanks, i'm still undecided, need more researching.
My father took 4 large doses of sinemet each day. Some people take smaller doses every 2 hours and some take 3 smaller doses (10/100) per day. It varies with each individual.
Years ago, prior to the addition of carbidopa.benserizide to levodopa there was a multi vitamin which was used by PD patients called Larobec. Larobec did not have pyridoxine/B6 because pyridoxine increased the conversion of pure levodopa (no carbidopa....) in the body and decreased the effectiveness of the drug.
Blocking the Negative Effects of Pyridoxine on Patients Receiving Levodopa
The point is that people taking carbidopa/benserizide should be taking pyridoxine.
"i had nice piece off beef steak the other day and feel better."
Parkinson's disease patients have a strange relationship between iron. Studies, like the following, show there is a relationship between anemia prior to the development of PD:
Anemia or low hemoglobin levels preceding Parkinson disease
But it has been noted that they have altered iron concentrations in their brains:
People with Parkinson's show altered iron levels in their brains
""In Parkinson's patients we found excess iron, as expected from previous studies, in the substantia nigra but also in extensive areas of the neocortex," Nestor says.
"In contrast, standard MRI showed no significant differences between people affected by Parkinson's and healthy study participants. In addition, QSM revealed anomalies also in areas that until now have attracted little interest in Parkinson's. "There is a region in the lower brain called dentate nucleus, which is normally iron rich. Yet, our whole-brain approach indicated decreased iron content in this area in Parkinson's patients - extremely so in some individuals - highlighting how this method can open new avenues of investigation in Parkinson's disease,"
"The enzyme that converts the amino acid L-tyrosine to L-Dopa is less active in Parkinsonian patients. As iron activates this enzyme, taking iron supplementation has had impressive results in at least one study (J Neurol Trans, 1986; 67:287-92). But to confuse matters further, Parkinsonian patients are known to have raised iron levels in a portion of their brains, which appears to aggravate the disease process (Can J Neurol Sci, 1990; 17(3): 286-91). "
If you find this article interesting you may want to print it out as a pdf to keep a digital copy. The domain has expired. Also, it mentions niacin and pyridoxine deficiency whilst taking sinemet.
To make matters even worse:
High doses of riboflavin and the elimination of dietary red meat promote the recovery of some motor functions in Parkinson's disease patients
This is the problem with PD. The evidence is confusing and often contradictory. The question is do you have a history of anemia? A history of heavy iron/meat consumption?
Niacin is cheap and 100 mg supplements are widely available. I have taken 5 mg of methylcobalamin for 5/6 years and it has helped with my energy levels. 400 mcg of Methyl folate is also available online. 100 mg of riboflavin also online. Online purchasing is cheaper than going to a health food store. 25 mg P5P supplements same story.
Identifying individual nutrients and simultaneously taking them constitutes a multi-vitamin.
iron rich well water. i thought i benefited from drinking it once after i started on bottled water. mucuna does not have ironmolecule that levodopa has., or is that natural dopamine.
excellent article, very comprehensive. my neighbour across road mother lived to 100 i believe. not a very well maintained well at all in basement of family home that they used as fridge back then. the water must of been safe. my generation started to uuse herbacides in pastures. i'm bottom of hill to them all.
(i saw her son dragging his leg, then i guess he must of gone on meds. he stuttered as a child, has more distant family with leg problem.
another neighbour, got artisien well and a small water condencer. they're a modestly priced, countertop solution. a lot of the bottled water is not spring water, but condensed water.
Not everyone thinks that insecticides/pesticides....from farming are the sole cause of PD. In addition to farm chemicals people living in rural locations have greater exposure to bacterial pathogens and Drs Caldwell in Alabama showed a relationship between streptomyces and PD:
The Prevalence and Distribution of Neurodegenerative Compound-Producing Soil Streptomyces spp.
I was exposed to copious amounts of lawn chemicals, got sick with a pre-parkinsonian syndrome and recovered through vitamin/amino acid/mineral... supplementation. This is why I think chemicals are a secondary co-factor for the development of PD and not the cause. The connecting element between streptomyces, nocardia and rhodococcus is they are all bacteria with fungal properties - a dangerous combination.
Hi Silverstrov, are you still taking only niacin? I wonder if you ever combined both niacin and NR or NMN? I understand niacin and only niacin reduces inflammation from the GPR109A receptor. But does niacin increase NAD levels the way NR or NMN does? What about taking both? You mentioned (I believe) that they don’t compete. My father has PD as well. I too have minimized my symptoms but am also reminded of my underlying disease process by muscle twitches in my shoulder.
hope i'm nt wearing out my welcome, one final question. I've desided to switch to mp. whats a good reliable source, and do i have to fiddle with it or just take it capsule form. anything else i need to know? whenever you have spare time.
It really does not matter which form of MP you try because it will take experimentation to find the optimal dose. I am going to throw some options to you prior to trying MP.
1) take a Trigonella foenum-graecum (Fenugreek) extract, 300 mg twice a day, with Sinemet/Madopar
Efficacy and safety of standardized extract of Trigonella foenum-graecum L seeds as an adjuvant to L-Dopa in the management of patients with Parkinson
"The objective of this study is to evaluate disease modifying efficacy and safety of a standardized extract of Trigonella foenum-graecum L, Fenugreek (IBHB) (family Fabaceae) as a nutritional adjuvant to Levo-dopa (L-Dopa) in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients. We conducted double-blind placebo-controlled proof of concept clinical study of IBHB capsules (300 mg, twice daily) with matching placebo for 6 months of period in 50 patients of PD stabilized on L-Dopa therapy. The efficacy outcome measures were the scores of Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS - total and its subsections), and Hoehn and Yahr (H&Y) staging at baseline and end of 6-months treatment duration. Safety evaluation included haematology, biochemistry, urinalysis parameters and adverse event monitoring. Total UPDRS scores in IBHB treatment (0.098%) showed slower rise as opposed to steep rise (13.36%) shown by placebo. Further, Clinically Important Difference for total UPDRS scores and scores of motor subsection of UPDRS was found to be 5.3 and 4.8, respectively, in favour of IBHB treatment. Similar improvement was shown by IBHB in terms of H&Y staging as compared with placebo. IBHB was found to have excellent safety and tolerability profile. In conclusion, IBHB can be useful adjuvant treatment with L-Dopa in management of PD patients."
Citicoline in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. (1990)
"Eighty-five patients with an established diagnosis of primary Parkinson's disease were randomly assigned to receive their usual dose of levodopa (mean, 381 mg daily) plus 1,200 mg of citicoline daily or half their usual dose of levodopa (mean, 196 mg daily) plus the citicoline. Results of the Webster Rating Scale, a pegboard test, drawing, writing, and walking tests, a test of emotional state, and an overall assessment, administered before and after four weeks of treatment, revealed no significant between-group differences. Improvements on the tests were shown by more patients who received half their levodopa dose plus citicoline than by those who continued to receive their usual levodopa dose plus the citicoline. It is concluded that the levodopa-saving effect of citicoline could be used to decrease the incidence of side effects and retard the loss of efficacy of levodopa in long-term treatment."
More recently, in 2015 a commercial brand of citicoline was tested on adolescent males and supplementation resulted in:
"Objective: This study assessed the effects of citicoline, a nutraceutical, on attention, psychomotor function, and impulsivity in healthy adolescent males. Method: Seventy-five healthy adolescent males were randomly assigned to either the citicoline group (n = 51 with 250 or 500 mg citicoline) or placebo (n = 24). Participants completed the Ruff 2&7 Selective Attention Test, Finger Tap Test, and the Computerized Performance Test, Second Edition (CPT-II) at baseline and after 28 days of supplementation. Results: Individuals receiving citicoline exhibited improved attention (p = 0.02) and increased psychomotor speed (p = 0.03) compared with those receiving placebo. Higher weight-adjusted dose significantly predicted increased accuracy on an attention task (p = 0.01), improved signal detectability on a computerized attention task (p = 0.03), and decreased impulsivity (p = 0.01). Discussion: Adolescent males receiving 28 days of Cognizin® citicoline showed improved attention and psychomotor speed and reduced impulsivity compared to adolescent males who received placebo."
"Neurocognitive Assessment
'Figure 1. Improved performance on the Finger Tap Test after supplementation. * p < 0.05 Note. DH = Dominant Hand."
You have many options and options are good to have. So you can try to either substitute Zandopa for Sinemet or use them both together. The other supplements mentioned, regardless of what form of levodopa is used, are highly recommended.
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