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Linda Rotz wrote: > My mother has had PD for about 15 years. Fortunately she has had a > very slow > progression of the disease. Lately she has been getting weaker and slower. > She is on 50/200 Sinemet and Elderpryl. She has had two major surgeries in > the last year > and a half, unrelated to her PD. My question is that she needs to > take vitamines and iron, Dear Linda, The surgeries your mother had are likely contributing to her weakness. And it may very well be that she needs vitamins and iron, but has her doctor or a registered dietitian informed you of this? Unless she is anemic, it is now thought that people over 50 should not take iron supplements, as iron has oxidative properties and may contribute to heart disease. If she IS anemic, then indeed she needs more iron. It's true that iron metabolism appears to be affected with PD; however, this does not seem to be due to dietary iron intake. So if she gets iron from the foods she eats, it should not be a problem. Regarding vitamin supplements, again, her doctor or dietitian should recommend an appropriate brand for her. When levopopa was taken by itself, B6 interfered with it, but now that the levodopa/carbidopa combination is used, that is no longer a problem. Unless she has other conditions that may affect vitamin use (use of Coumadin, risk for stroke, etc.) there is no reason why vitamin supplements in the amount of the RDA should be a problem; however, her doctor should be queried before she begins. Best regards, Kathrynne Holden, MS, RD Editor-in-Chief, "Spotlight on Food--nutrition news for people 60-plus" http://www.fortnet.org/~fivstar and NUTRITION TOPICS copy-ready handouts http://www.dietetics.com/class/fivstar/ Tel: 970-493-6532 Fax: 970-493-6538