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Ralph Reichert wrote: > > James Duke,PhD, in his book "Green Pharmacy" lauds fava beans (&sprouts) as > a good source of levodopa for treating PD. I've always thought L-dopa can't > get across to the brain when it's ingested without carbidopa or other > carrier. > Does anyone have any information about fava beans and PD? The only danger > from fava beans I know of is favism from g-6 phosphatase deficiency, an > inherited gene defect. Ralph This info was posted long ago, but here again for convenience: Tho some have tried eating fava beans with positive results, I suspect it's a placebo effect. True, they do contain dopamine, but to get from mouth to brain you must start with levodopa, a different compound that can cross the blood-brain barrier and turn to dopamine after it gets in. Second, even if that objection is false, most of the dopamine in fava is not in the bean but in the nearly inedible hull. I guess you could get it down if it's first ground into a fine paste, I haven't tried it. The favism reaction can be fatal, but I understand it's confined mainly to a southern Mediterranean ethnic lineage. Cheers, Joe J. R. Bruman (818) 789-3694 3527 Cody Road Sherman Oaks, CA 91403-5013