I just wondered whether anyone had tried using MP in baking? I have been experimenting supplementing my sinemet with this and currently take it mixed in a little rice milk but this makes me feel sick. Has anyone else experienced this and found any solutions? I thought that making little cakes with it in would be quite nice but don't know if the cooking process would cause a problem.
Everything I've read over the years about Mucuna Pruriens, indicates that the Levadopa within the bean loses its potency when used in cooking. It sounds a great idea to make little cup-cakes containing a Dopamine booster within its appealing form! Hope you can perfect a recipe that you can share? 
Hello Gazelle,
Have you tried Mucuna Solbia pills?. They are 40% levadopa, that is a single pill contains 100mg of levadopa, they are easier to take than the usual Mucuna in powder. My husband takes it this way. He takes it half an hour before meals, because we've read it is better and more effective.
I hope this may help you.
I, too used to take it in milk and although I wasn't sick, it was very unpleasant tasting. Thanks for the info about the pills. I haven't been taking MP for a while, but have been thinking of going back to it, instead of increasing Madopar.
I suppose you could put it in unbaked cakes, such as chocolate rice crispies, or even sprinkling it on mashed banana or anything really!
Yes, it is best to take all meds. an hour before or after eating.
Looking forward to some MP recipes then!
Twinks.
I began giving my husband Mucuna Pruriens in June'17. He has a teaspoon in milk at 8am and another at 8pm, these doses help a great deal with his 'off periods', he still has them but they are shorter than before. He is on high doses of Madopar so anythng that seems to help without the need for extra medication is good. Does anyone know of any other products which help with the 'off periods'? My husband is 74, he was diagnosed in 2011. He doesn't have a tremor at all but his 'off periods' are very frustrating for him, he is a very active man and when the off periods start it is as though someone had flipped a switch rendering him immobile for about an hour then the meds kick in and he is fine until the next time. I find this forum excellent. It was a posting from Twinks that led me to MP in the first place.
Hi JKM2V,
Pleased to hear your husband feels some benefit from Mucuna Pruriens. Perhaps you could split the doses into four, rather than one in the morning and one at night? A teaspoonful sounds an awful lot at one go. Mine came with a tiny scoop, which holds about as much as a capsule of Madopar. I took it three times a day. As I mentioned, I've been taking dispersible Madopar in between my Madopar capsules, but am seriously thinking about replacing the dispersible with MP.
Twinks.
Hi Twinks, my husband takes Madopar every 2.5 hours from 7am to 7.30pm then 2 CR Madopar at 10.45 + Pramipexole - a small dose 3 times a day + Madopar dispersible twice a day. This is why I am so keen to find any alternative options. I have read a lot about Opicapone which I mentioned to the PD nurse in April but she wouldn't prescribe it, I intend to have another go at getting it when he sees his PD consultant in October. I do a lot of research myself as I don't fine appointments twice a year very helpful. I believe that I know far more about the way PD is affecting my husband than the specialists as I see him 24/7. Thanks for the tip, I will try spreading the MP into smaller doses.
Hello JKM2V,
can I refer you to The treatment and therapy list, a few items down. Under the heading Opicapone, Anyone had this new.
It makes interesting reading.
Jules77
Strikes me that taking levodopa in food without discussing this first with your doc is unwise, to say the least. It's a drug that needs to be carefully titrated with dosage, and the random absorption of a food product undermines that.
Or is that just a typical retired GP being precious?
Yes, always discuss with your GP before taking any natural preparations, as Island Mike says.
Before going on Madopar, I did a six month experiment with natural Levadopa, (Mucuna Pruriens), with the approval of my doctor. I kept a diary of dosage and how I felt each day. Whilst I got some benefit, it wasn't enough to improve my symptoms dramatically. My neurologist suggested that I should go on Madopar and I ended my experiment. He also said that there was natural Levadopa in broad beans, which is the same family as MP. So, although they're not my favourite vegetable, I eat broad beans regularly! (I buy the frozen ones from Morrison's).
I think we owe it to ourselves to keep an open mind about using alternative natural methods of dealing with our symptoms, as long as we talk it through responsibly with our medical experts. After all, WE know our own body better than anyone else and until a cure comes along, I don't think anyone should be chastised for trying to help themselves.
Twinks.
Hello Everyone,
Thank you for replying, I’ve just seem my neurologist after a rather long gap and I brought up the subject of mucuna pruriens with her. She was very against me using it, and did give me the quite reasonable argument that i was buying a powder from the internet and I don’t really know what is in it…though I did use a supplier recommended by someone who already takes MP. She also said that because it make me feel sick (in fact, be sick) its not something my body will tolerate. She then recommended I increase my current dose of Sinemet CR from three tablets a day to four as I am very ‘off’ from the evening through to the morning.
I was looking into MP for the same reasons others have cited…I am scared of increasing my meds and the long term effect of doing so. i’m only 51, it doesn’t feel that old! So, i’ve started taking the extra tablet for now as it does make me feel a lot better. Anyway, thanks for listening, I don’t really know what the best answer is, we are all so different!
Gazelle
