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On 23 Jul 2004 at 14:23, M.Schild wrote: > isn´t it the basis of Zandopa, the indian ´equivalent´ of Sinemet? > Mucuna pruriens does contains ldopa, nobody will doubt that so it > should be of some use. Years ago it only came in powder form and > tasted pretty bad. Nowadays it comes in gelules so at least, bad taste > is not a problem any more. I don´t know what the equivalence with > regular sinemet is but people who have taken it said at least the > constipation was no more a problem... It is a natural product so who > will finance research? maryse Just because a product is "natural" does not make it better. Digitalis, for example, is a natural substance which was used to treat heart disease because of the alkaloids within the leaf of the foxglove (Digitalis) plant. Standardizing the dosage, however, was a problem with the leaf (believe it or not, the standard back in the early to mid-20th century was to calculate how much of the leaf extract would make a pigeon vomit!), and once the pure alkaloids were extracted (Digitoxin, Digoxin, Gitaligin, etc.), the dosage could be standardized. There may be dopaminergic chemicals in mucuna (there are some in fava beans, as well), but use of these "natural" products has many pitfalls due to dosage considerations. In general, give me the "pure" or synthesized product any time, especially when dealing with drugs that have a critical dosage. Best, Bob Robert A. Fink, M. D., F.A.C.S., P. C. Neurological Surgery 2500 Milvia Street Suite 222 Berkeley, CA 94704-2636 USA 510-849-2555 FAX: 510-849-2557 <http://www.rafink.com/> "Ex Tristitia Virtus" Disclaimer: That which is written in my e-mail is not to be considered as "medical advice". Such advice can only be given after a formal, in-person, consultation between doctor and patient. ********************************************** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn