Levodopa/Constipation

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I am awaiting my first meeting with a Parkinson’s nurse next week and getting very stressed, anxious and fatigued. My partner persuaded me to call the Parkinson’s UK helpline for a chat. I mentioned that I was worried about worsening constipation when I start medication and was told by the nurse who called me back that Levodopa can actually help reduce constipation as it speeds up your system again. Whilst this sounds feasible it goes against all that I have read. What are your thoughts and experiences please ?

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Hi Rob28
Whenever I speak to my Parkinson’s Nurse one of her first questions is “do you suffer from constipation?”. The reason she asks is because Parkinsons medication can cause constipation.

I make sure everyday J eat either dried prunes or apricots which work for me.

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hi @Rob28 ! parkinson’s disease often damages and kills lots of neurons based in the intestines that are responsible for making sure your guts move the material being digested along toward the exit. because of this, while normal people typically have a colon transit time of 1 to 2 days, victims of parkinson’s disease may experience colon transit times of up to a week. it is therefore important for us to pay attention to moving the contents of our guts along properly. walking supposedly helps a lot. diet is important. medicines can help or hurt. hope this information helps! best wishes, joe

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Hi parkiejoe. I wondered what the transit time was so thats useful. I am about to start medication, but have always suffered from constipation so expecting it to worsen but hope not. Everyday I have All Bran with Prunes, a Kiwi Fruit and a good amount of fibre in veggies/beans etc, also my Lactulose.

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I’d trust yourself. If it’s causing you constipation- it’s causing it for you. I’ve used movicol.

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I think you have to find what works for you. I have been constipated for years and tried all medications. Lots of fruit and fibre , Senna , Movicol - nothing works consistently unless I take a huge dose!

Hi Rob28
Whenever I speak to my Parkinson’s Nurse one of her first questions is “do you suffer from constipation?”. The reason she asks is because Parkinsons medication can cause constipation.

I make sure everyday J eat either dried prunes or apricots which work for me.