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Barb Mallut, this excerpt validates the better result of glucose with levodopa. ron Manipulation of dietary components other than protein has been studied less extensively. Carbohydrate loads, by stimulating insulin secretion, reduce circulating amino acid levels.[39] This may be the explanation for the observation that the effectiveness of oral L-dopa doses is enhanced by glucose loading.[40] Berry et al administered balanced carbohydrate:protein (ratio = 5) meals to Parkinsonian patients and found that plasma neutral amino acid levels did not change.[41] They suggested that the effect of carbohydrate in lowering amino acid concentration could cancel out the rise following a moderate protein load and that a balanced dietary intake may be as effective as protein restriction/redistribution.