 |
 |
>I am personally convinced that high intake of some proteins concurrently >with levodopa interferes with its absorption. I was in the habit of taking >my levodopa an washing it down with artificially sweetened blackcurrent. >The effects on me were somewhat erratic. Sometimes all PD symptoms would be >diminished, at othertimes some would remain. I then noted that the >sweetener (marketed under the name of Nutrasweet) included phenylalanine >which in turn has a molecular structure somewhat similar to dopamine. I >switched to the sugar sweetened variety and all my PD symptoms were >diminished - in some cases to the point of eradication. I believe that >other changes to my medication, diet and lifestyle (more fibre, more >exercise, less feeling sorry for myself) have also helped. I clearly remember a session at the annual meeting of the Gerontological Society of America (either 1989 or 1990) that was given by an RN regarding PD. At the time, she let us in on preliminary work that showed that NutraSweet was to be avoided by people with PD. Can't remember the specifics as to why, but will try to locate some info on this and post later this week if I find anything. The effect of the NutraSweet was that it caused increased rigidity. Wendy Rogers [log in to unmask]