[soccertese]

wasn't look for anything on fava, was just googling l-dopa.
worth a look.
personally i think you'd just have to eat too many beans and deal with the side affects of that. plus what other aminio acids in the beans interfere with l-dopa absorption thru small intestine, bbb? and where is the proof that "natural l-dopa" has less side affects? might be in the bibliography.

According to our study, fava beans are rich in levo-dihydroxy phenylalanine (L-dopa), the precursor of dopamine and Carbidopa (C-dopa) are being investigated for use in the management of Parkinson’s disease. Large quantities of fava beans have to be administered to meet the required quantities of L-dopa ,which can causes flatulence in patients. Clinical studies have shown that in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, the consumption of unsprouted fava beans in large quantities in order to get the desired amount of L-dopa, caused flatulence in the patients. Hence, the consumption of just the elicited and sprouted fava beans with a high L-dopa and a phenolic content, which is cheap and readily available, would be a better option. The above experiments give an understanding properties Moreover, since synthesized L-dopa has side effects, the search for a natural concentrated source is becoming more significant and necessary. The present research was conducted to enrich the fava bean substrate with C-dopa and L-dopa via a solid-state bioconversion system Enhanced levels of L-dopa were observed during the early fermentation stages of the fava beans, (day 1-8, fresh and dried 0.65-1.51mg/ml) and these declined during the later stages of the fermentation. Maximal amounts of the L-dopa and the C-dopacontents were seen on day 8 for the fava beans which were treated, which were 100% higher than those of the control content. In others it is extended to day 14. They have tremendous applications in the prevention and treatment of highly prevalent human diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and Parkinson’s disease [18]. In our study ,With regards to the [Table/Fig-2] we found, in addition to (L-dopa) with concentration of 0.65-1.51mg/ml and 0.15–2.47 for c-dopa in fresh and dried Fava bean.This concentration is the same as that which is reported in other studies but the main point (which can be seen in [Table/Fig-2] is thatC-dopa can be obtained from naturally dried and sprouted fava beans not founded naturally and more prepare synthetically in chemical laboratory.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3708185/

[Aunt Bean]

Ken Allan said that fava sprouts have about 2 mg each, but the pods have about 50 mg each....we juice the pods, which removes the fiber . Then we dry the juice , which preserves the l-dopa.
The juice can be purchased thru international gourmet though expensive...much cheaper to grow your own. A Blessed Christmas to you all Sandra

[shcg]

Originally Posted by Aunt Bean

Ken Allan said that fava sprouts have about 2 mg each, but the pods have about 50 mg each....we juice the pods, which removes the fiber . Then we dry the juice , which preserves the l-dopa.
The juice can be purchased thru international gourmet though expensive...much cheaper to grow your own. A Blessed Christmas to you all Sandra

Wow! I guess it's having carbadopa naturally present that made my bulb light up.
______________________________________
SINCE 1913!! ARTICLE
Levodopa was identified in the seedlings, pods
and beans of the broad bean (Vicia faba-VF)
by Guggenheim in 1913.1 Although anecdotal
cases of PD improvement after ingesting broad
beans have been presented,2 we are not aware
of any studies which have systematically examined
this question. _______________________________________
Sorry for the rough copy paste. A good articale found in the notes of first linked above.

[6] Rabey JM, Vered Y, Shabtai H, Graff E, Korczyn AD. Improvement of Parkinsonian features correlate with high plasma levodopa values after broad bean (Vicia faba) consumption. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiat. 1992;55:725–27. [PMC free article] [PubMed]

[moondaughter]

Originally Posted by shcg

Wow! I guess it's having carbadopa naturally present that made my bulb light up.
______________________________________
SINCE 1913!! ARTICLE
Levodopa was identified in the seedlings, pods
and beans of the broad bean (Vicia faba-VF)
by Guggenheim in 1913.1 Although anecdotal
cases of PD improvement after ingesting broad
beans have been presented,2 we are not aware
of any studies which have systematically examined
this question. _______________________________________
Sorry for the rough copy paste. A good articale found in the notes of first linked above.

[6] Rabey JM, Vered Y, Shabtai H, Graff E, Korczyn AD. Improvement of Parkinsonian features correlate with high plasma levodopa values after broad bean (Vicia faba) consumption. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiat. 1992;55:725–27. [PMC free article] [PubMed]

I juice the pods and freeze it in small jelly jars and find mixing 1/4 cup/day w/cranberry juice or g reen powder drink mix works well. I still take small dose of LD/CD but assume there is benefit from naturally occurring enzymes and amino acids that accompany the LD in the beans -I believe they assist the LD(in the med and the juice) in crossing the BBB. The juice feels very grounding- expensive to buy tho especially to take in the quantities I consume. Favabean pods are available through special order in my produce dept of local grocery store from March thru June. I juice over 100 lbs of them and grow some myself....they are very forgiving actually and benefit the soil-rather than consume its nutrients they add them -makes sense for a malady which exhibits rebellious qi flow that medicine would strengthen qi flow to the earth as well. Fava juice also helps with smoothing out dyskinesia - can't say enough about it reallly. md

[soccertese]

Originally Posted by moondaughter

I juice the pods and freeze it in small jelly jars and find mixing 1/4 cup/day w/cranberry juice or g reen powder drink mix works well. I still take small dose of LD/CD but assume there is benefit from naturally occurring enzymes and amino acids that accompany the LD in the beans -I believe they assist the LD(in the med and the juice) in crossing the BBB. The juice feels very grounding- expensive to buy tho especially to take in the quantities I consume. Favabean pods are available through special order in my produce dept of local grocery store from March thru June. I juice over 100 lbs of them and grow some myself....they are very forgiving actually and benefit the soil-rather than consume its nutrients they add them -makes sense for a malady which exhibits rebellious qi flow that medicine would strengthen qi flow to the earth as well. Fava juice also helps with smoothing out dyskinesia - can't say enough about it reallly. md

FAVA are a legume and legumes have a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia bacteria that grow on the roots, form nodules and take atmospheric nitrogen and convert it into biologically available nitrogen for the plant and bacteria, scientists are trying to incorporate this function into grains via genetic engineering. so if there is the right species of rhizobia in the soil, the FAVA plants will add nitrogen to the soil and organic matter when the plants die. it is used as a cover crop to add organic matter and nitrogen to soil same with clovers, vetch, peas, alfalfa. so if you aren't adding nitrogen to the soil and want to maximize the soil building capabilities/protein seed content of FAVA make sure you get the right rhizobia innoculum when you plant, it might naturally be in your soil, might not, it's there if you see tiny nodules on the roots.

[rainbow676]

Originally Posted by soccertese

FAVA are a legume and legumes have a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia bacteria that grow on the roots, form nodules and take atmospheric nitrogen and convert it into biologically available nitrogen for the plant and bacteria, scientists are trying to incorporate this function into grains via genetic engineering. so if there is the right species of rhizobia in the soil, the FAVA plants will add nitrogen to the soil and organic matter when the plants die. it is used as a cover crop to add organic matter and nitrogen to soil same with clovers, vetch, peas, alfalfa. so if you aren't adding nitrogen to the soil and want to maximize the soil building capabilities/protein seed content of FAVA make sure you get the right rhizobia innoculum when you plant, it might naturally be in your soil, might not, it's there if you see tiny nodules on the roots.

This is a really interesting thread -- thanks, everyone. I had a couple questions.

Aunt Bean, you have been so generous about offering to host me down at your farm. I still want to come down and learn about how to farm fava beans someday, but as I think it through, I am realizing that it would be difficult for my parents to grow their own fava beans. So my parents and i were wondering if you sell your tincture.

If you don't sell yours, we were maybe going to order the fava juice from the website that you mentioned.

Moondaughter, you said that you take 1/4 a cup, correct? Do you take it once a day, or more than once a day?

Thanks very much!!

[moondaughter]

Originally Posted by rainbow676

This is a really interesting thread -- thanks, everyone. I had a couple questions.

Aunt Bean, you have been so generous about offering to host me down at your farm. I still want to come down and learn about how to farm fava beans someday, but as I think it through, I am realizing that it would be difficult for my parents to grow their own fava beans. So my parents and i were wondering if you sell your tincture.

If you don't sell yours, we were maybe going to order the fava juice from the website that you mentioned.

Moondaughter, you said that you take 1/4 a cup, correct? Do you take it once a day, or more than once a day?

Thanks very much!!

I take it once/day usually but on occasion twice....remember that I only juice the pod- not the bean.....only guessing but i suspect the bean is harder to digest.

[Aunt Bean]

I cannot sell tincture as I am not able to grow more favas than to supply the basic needs for my PD patient/friend and myself. I do all my farming by hand organically and mostly with a shovel and mattock! (not so young anymore either)AS far as tincture...I only take it when my symptoms show, not every couple hours as people need sinemet. It seems to be dependent upon what I am doing / interacting with people or a stressful situation/ driving/ singing & playing music etc. I might use tincture 6 times one day and 3 times the next according to my needs. Also depends highly on what I have eaten. So many foods that I grow are highly supportive to brain function. Added hot peppers/ green tomatoes /and egg plant to the foods I consume. I even fermented a batch of this combination with ripe tomatoes and sweet peppers and fava beans. After fermenting...I dehydrated the mixture and add this to soups and even to egg omelets.I also make fermented papaya which helps my symptoms in amazing ways. Just eating fresh papaya or canned even can help you (do not use papaya if you have a latex allergy...all parts have latex)We have our own chickens (which are free range) and eggs are a staple here also in my diet. You can dehydrate pod juice by adding a little salt and ground flax seed or what ever else you would like to use to thicken it. Then put little blobs on parchment paper and dry in a dehydrator.We freeze these in a ziplock bag to keep the l-dopa storage life longer. My friend just lets these little "blobs" hydrate in her mouth and then chew them up for l-dopa. We also make l-dopa cookies from the juice and freeze them for her use. She also depends highly on sprouted fava beans (soak 24 hrs and rinse/ place in a colander and rinse for 3 more days...then peel them, cut out any bad spots rinse again and steam for 6 to 10 minutes...until easily chewed) you can freeze these as is and use as needed. Each sprout is approx 2 mg natural l-dopa. I've also made tincture from these. Humus can be made from the steamed sprouts by letting them cool and grinding to flour in a food processor...then add lemon juice , oil oil etc to make l-dopa dip to eat as needed. The flour can also be used in baking to boost l-dopa. . Just remember that if you are adding fava products to your diet that sinemet will probably need to be reduced accordingly. Too much l-dopa is not good for you...proceed with caution in small amounts. Favas are a gentle support, but you can overdo if you make things TOO TASTY and over eat them. Also if you are planning to try favas...get a G6pd blood workup and make sure you don't have an inherited condition called favism...if so do not eat favas!. Also they can cause an elevated blood pressure if you are on an MOAI drug. Ask your doctor if you are thinking of adding favas if he can help regulate your meds accordingly and work with you. I have not had any side effects from favas, only symptom relief...but they do not seem to work for everyone. Either does sinemet...so remember you are an individual with specific needs that may be greatly different from the next person with PD. Each one unique in the cause of PD. Mine is inherited...plus I was exposed to chemicals and injuries . You are special and don't forget that . Handle with care! Get a lot of sunshine and exercise ...you won't regret it.

[rainbow676]

Originally Posted by Aunt Bean

I cannot sell tincture as I am not able to grow more favas than to supply the basic needs for my PD patient/friend and myself. I do all my farming by hand organically and mostly with a shovel and mattock! (not so young anymore either)AS far as tincture...I only take it when my symptoms show, not every couple hours as people need sinemet. It seems to be dependent upon what I am doing / interacting with people or a stressful situation/ driving/ singing & playing music etc. I might use tincture 6 times one day and 3 times the next according to my needs. Also depends highly on what I have eaten. So many foods that I grow are highly supportive to brain function. Added hot peppers/ green tomatoes /and egg plant to the foods I consume. I even fermented a batch of this combination with ripe tomatoes and sweet peppers and fava beans. After fermenting...I dehydrated the mixture and add this to soups and even to egg omelets.I also make fermented papaya which helps my symptoms in amazing ways. Just eating fresh papaya or canned even can help you (do not use papaya if you have a latex allergy...all parts have latex)We have our own chickens (which are free range) and eggs are a staple here also in my diet. You can dehydrate pod juice by adding a little salt and ground flax seed or what ever else you would like to use to thicken it. Then put little blobs on parchment paper and dry in a dehydrator.We freeze these in a ziplock bag to keep the l-dopa storage life longer. My friend just lets these little "blobs" hydrate in her mouth and then chew them up for l-dopa. We also make l-dopa cookies from the juice and freeze them for her use. She also depends highly on sprouted fava beans (soak 24 hrs and rinse/ place in a colander and rinse for 3 more days...then peel them, cut out any bad spots rinse again and steam for 6 to 10 minutes...until easily chewed) you can freeze these as is and use as needed. Each sprout is approx 2 mg natural l-dopa. I've also made tincture from these. Humus can be made from the steamed sprouts by letting them cool and grinding to flour in a food processor...then add lemon juice , oil oil etc to make l-dopa dip to eat as needed. The flour can also be used in baking to boost l-dopa. . Just remember that if you are adding fava products to your diet that sinemet will probably need to be reduced accordingly. Too much l-dopa is not good for you...proceed with caution in small amounts. Favas are a gentle support, but you can overdo if you make things TOO TASTY and over eat them. Also if you are planning to try favas...get a G6pd blood workup and make sure you don't have an inherited condition called favism...if so do not eat favas!. Also they can cause an elevated blood pressure if you are on an MOAI drug. Ask your doctor if you are thinking of adding favas if he can help regulate your meds accordingly and work with you. I have not had any side effects from favas, only symptom relief...but they do not seem to work for everyone. Either does sinemet...so remember you are an individual with specific needs that may be greatly different from the next person with PD. Each one unique in the cause of PD. Mine is inherited...plus I was exposed to chemicals and injuries . You are special and don't forget that . Handle with care! Get a lot of sunshine and exercise ...you won't regret it.

Many thanks, Moonbeam and Aunt Bean, for this good advice. My mom is going to get the favism blood test within the next couple weeks and then we will try some of the strategies you have suggested. Aunt Bean, you sure sound like a gifted gardener and healer!