glutathione?

[oyster]

hello everyone,
i'm new, and just diagnosed. i've done alot of research in the last few weeks and have learned alot about pd. i knew absolutely nothing about pd 3 months ago. i'm in early stage and looking at various treatment options. iv glutathione looks very promising- is anyone here taking iv glutathione?

[deejm]

I am not familiarwith the Glutathione treatment but would be intrested in following it. Is this a clinical trial?

Thanks a lot.
deejm









thanks

[pegleg]

Glutathione is a (protein) supplement given in large dosages (by IV or via a port) that supposedly "detoxifies" one's body (but this has not be proven scientifically) and prevents oxidative stress. I know two people who have Parkinson's and swear by the therapy. One guy says it gives him lots of energy.

At my local support group website, a dedicated glutathione user has written an excellent article:

http://www.tennesseepd.net/articleglutathione_themop.htm

Hope this helps

Peggy

[oyster]

thanks for responding,
i'm still quite functional and the sinemet scares me. there appears to be alot of quite good research on diet and various supplements that can realy make a huge difference. these arent followed up and i dont see many folks talking about it. frustrating, eh?:mad:

[pegleg]

I guess we're creatures who want PROOF and we inadvertently think that science (research) is the proof, but that often is not theh case. Many times a promising treatment is halted for financial reasons.

See this thread: Life-Changing Drug Withheld
http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2947

Peggy

[oyster]

gosh, pegleg,
astory like that leaves me speachless. i'm starting to see what a fight this is for pwp. what kind of " complimentary" treatments have you tried? i am following a regime developed by dr david perlmutter in naples fl. alot of strong anti-oxidants and precursors to dopa, glutathione, etc.
a month ago an abnormal movement specialist at duke in durham nc gave me a 95% prbability dx of pd. i had three of the four main symptoms, (my tremors are initial tremors) stiff left arm, slowness, dragging of left foot, some speach stuff, sleep stuff, yada. a bad day, no doubt.
then last week we travel to naples to see perlmutter because he is a board certified neurologist that actualy seems to claim that these non toxic non big pharma treatments can help. he also claims he can support his theories with research published in respsctable peer reviewed journals.
well by this time i've been taking all these sups for three weeks and the day of the appointment they all seem to kick in and my symptoms were less than they'ld been in months and months. dr p. would'nt give a dx of pd. what a trick! and i mean that in a frustrating way.
i feel realy lucky be able to sift through alot of this before having to start on the sinemet or azilet or whatever. iknow also that some go years before getting a dx. amazing to me the spirit of so many that i've read about.

[pegleg]

oyster
I'm afraid I am one of those people who was put on L-dopa (Sinemet) immediately on diagnosis (because that was the way PD was treated 12 years ago). But I am always looking for ways to cut down meds or just eating healthy foods that boost energy.

The National Parkinson's Foundation (NPF) has a wonderful program called "Ask the Dietitian," overseen by Kathrynne Holden, MS, RD. Below snipettes of forum replies:

* Ask your doctor at your annual physical exam to check for homocysteine. It is very possible to become deficient in B12 as we get older, even if we get enough B12 in the diet.

* Regarding helpful foods, I recommend you check with your local PD support group or public library for a lending copy of my books "Eat Well, Stay Well with Parkinson's Disease" and "Cook Well, Stay Well with Parkinson's Disease. I recommend use of honey rather than sugar, ginger for nausea, turmeric, whole foods that are rich in antioxidants such as blueberries, strawberries, spinach, and whole grains such as wheat, barley, and brown rice.

* Tumeric contains curcumin, the component that has been studied for its health-promoting effects. Whether consuming the turmeric would be helpful for your relative, I cannot say definitely, because there isn’t enough research available on this. As you have noted, some people do report that they feel some improvement in PD symptoms, so it is certainly possible.

As to amounts, again, I cannot advise you, because so little research is available. For medicinal purposes, turmeric is frequently taken in a form standardized to curcumin content, at a dose that provides 400 to 600 mg of curcumin 3 times daily. However, I don’t know what that amount would translate to in terms of turmeric.

If you believe that the turmeric found in local shops is of good quality I don’t think you would need to grind it at home; but certainly if there is doubt, that would be a good alternative. Given in capsules might make it easier to swallow, especially if the capsule were taken with some applesauce or jelly. Then you would not need to be concerned with the taste.

I don’t have a particular recipe for curry using turmeric, although I frequently cook with turmeric. I add 1/4 to ½ teaspoon to a pot of rice before cooking, for example.

You can subscribe to her forum and search for questions by visiting this link:
http://www.parkinson.org/site/pp.asp?c=9dJFJLPwB&b=71418

Peg

[reverett123]

I am in the middle of my own experiment with turmeric and am having some amazing results. In addition, a friend with PD is experiencing similar benefits.

I have taken tablets for several years but had become concerned about just how well they were breaking down (uptake is low in the best of circumstances). So about a month ago I began taking turmeric powder straight from the spice rack.

At the time of this change I was in pretty bad shape. Over the last six to nine months I had been on a downward spiral with increasing periods of freezing, weakness in my legs, brain fog, bladder control, etc. My work days were ending at noon and I was useless around the house.

Then, just to prove that blessings are not immediately recognized, I experienced the indignity of total loss of bladder control while driving down the highway. I am not talking about incontinence or leakage here, but full-fledged emptying with thirty seconds warning. This is not the type of problem that goes with PD!

Research led me to the problems diabetics can face and a phenomenon called "osmotic diuresis" which sounded just like what I had experienced. Using a glucometer I began to check my blood sugar levels. The numbers all fell in the normal range but there was a pattern tied to my sinemet. About two hours after taking said med levels would be slowly climbing then suddenly over a thirty minute period climb forty points and go crashing down by fifty, still in the normal range but triggering my PD big time. This is known as reactive hypoglycemia and results when your body overreacts to a glucose increase by pumping out too much insulin leading to the crash.

It isn't generally known, but levodopa can cause major problems with blood sugar and as many as 80% of us have glucose problems. So, I began an "eat little meals with lots of protein" diet and immediately began to improve dramatically.

Never one to run a single experiment, this was the same time that I switched the form of the turmeric. But, having used the tablets for so long and thinking of it as simply a great anti-inflammatory, I gave the credit to the diet change.

I now am convinced that that was wrong. To understand what really was going on one needs to be aware of the HPA axis and its role in PD. The hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal grouppretty much control or influence every process in your body through hormonal release. Cortisol and adrenalin are just for starters. In PD as well as many other conditions, the HPA axis is out of balance. That is why we are so stress sensitive. It is also why we have high levels of cortisol.

The HPA axis also regulates the dance between insulin and glucose. Thus my diet was indeed working but there was more to it. Earlier this year there were two papers published by Chinese researchers finding that if you give a stressed out mouse turmeric you then have a happy relaxed mouse! It reset the parameters of the HPA axis!

This is far bigger news than it seems. It's not just PD either. Anxiety and depression are all candidates too.

In my own case I dropped at least three years of symptom buildup in 48 hours! I still don't believe it. But yesterday I skipped the turmeric and did so again today. By early afternoon I was back to where I was a month ago! I restarted turmeric this evening and expect improvement tomorrow.

I am using one teaspoon daily mixed with yogurt.

[oyster]

thanks rev,
and i have been following your thread over in bt#2. very interesting and i'm always waiting for the next development. i plan on switching from my tumeric pill to the spice and i shall mix it with yogurt the way you are trying it. i,ll post any results. i'm newly dx and my symptoms slight, though this week my left arm and hand has gotten stiffer, sore and somewhat painful.
other sups i take; l-carnetine
n-acetyl cystine
phosphatidyl serine
b complex
multi vit
coq10
vit e
dhea
dha
vit c:)

[blkmjkwmn]

Tumeric is tricky.... Not long ago there was a press release stating that certain brands? were tainted with something not so good-that exact info is probably out there on the web somewhere if you need detail on it. I would be sure and use only organic sources of the powder or tab form just to be safe. And oh BTW....please indulge yourself with as much organic as humanly possible espescially when your body starts talking to you with these GOD awful symptoms.:)