Originally Posted by Fiona

Ok, it is my thread, so I guess I am Resident Tree Hugger on call right now.

Hello, Invisable - welcome.

No, I had never heard of PD when I was diagnosed. I was just giving an example with the med students about one way the brain can work.

Now the question about Sinemet - actually it is inescapably complex. One reason people take it is because they are not presented with alternatives - and you are right, few have been developed in terms of pills. Let me point your attention to one of my mainstay info go-to's, a patent application made by some enormously prestigious doctors/researchers for the use of Mucuna Pruriens as a far superior alternative to Sinemet. http://www.freshpatents.com/Pharmace...0060165822.php
This is a commercial document to be sure, but then most studies are, in essence, these days. I find the research voice authoritative and compelling, the scientfic qualities impressive and elegantly put forward. I particularly direct your attention to Sections [0017] and [0027]. Now this is a plant - but I feel like if a drug company could design a product with these attributes, it would be heralded as a major breakthrough. But have you ever received information about this? By the way, you can get it at Vitamin Shoppe, amongst other places.

Also, Sinemet is incredibly addictive -not easy to change these horses even on dry land.

But your question holds even more in it... If what we believe affects us so much, should we not be trying to encourage a trusting faith in Sinemet, instead of undermining our own experience with it by harping on side effects? You didn't ask it but it is a good question. I don't know the answer for sure, but like most things here, it's a mix.