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Hi All -- I must have missed that post. It has been a trying time -- my root canal was only partly successful, it has gotten reinfected, and this new antibiotic has got me REALLY spacey! I have been hitting the 'delete' key a lot lately. I'm trying to write a nutrition/PD presentation for dietitians, boy, hope it makes sense..... > in my last post mentioning protein > i said 'animal protein' when i meant 'vegetable protein' > i was going to correct the post > but more questions kept popping up in my mind > animal protein [apparently and anecdotally - hmmm - pubmed?] > interferes with dopamine's absorption into the bloodstream So does plant protein > at the duodenum > do we know why, in detail? Protein is a long string of amino acids. It gets broken up into individual aminos, which are absorbed into the bloodstream. Five of these aminos (the large neutral aminos, or LNAAs) use the same intestinal 'carriers' as levodopa does. Since we generally eat quite a lot more protein than levodopa, the aminos take up all the 'carriers,' blocking the levodopa from being absorbed. Since levodopa has a rather short lifespan (around 90 minutes or so) it's important that it get into the bloodstream and up to the brain as soon as possible, so it can go to work. If we eat protein and levodopa at the same time, we usually get much poorer response from the levodopa than if we take the levodopa 30 minutes BEFORE eating. > do we know why milk has a reputation of being the 'worst' animal protein > in this regard? Animal protein has an amino acid profile higher in one of the LNAAs (leucine) than plant protein. Milk may also have other substances that interfere, I don't believe there is any published information to that effect, however. > is there any bio-chemical reason why fish specifically would 'do me in'? see above > do vegetable proteins interfere in the same way and to the same degree? see above > how about comparing 100gm servings of: > mozarella cheese > sirloin steak > chicken breast > tofu > lima beans see above > are they all 'equal' in their total protein content? Nope. Each kind of protein has a slightly different amino acid profile. > would they all interfere with dopamine absorption in the same way? Highly individual. Some folks tell me they take their Sinemet with a glass of milk, with no problems. Others tell me that ANY food will block their Sinemet. In general, I suspect plant proteins would offer more benefits to more people, but I don't know that for sure. And most of my clients don't want want to give up meat, eggs, milk, cheese, etc. Hope that helps, if not I'll try again later. Bit lightheaded just now. Best regards, Kathrynne -- Kathrynne Holden, MS, RD Medical nutrition therapy Author: "Eat well, stay well with Parkinson's disease" "Parkinson's disease: assessing and managing unique nutrition needs" http://www.nutritionucanlivewith.com/