Dietary Considerations in Parkinson’s Disease Treatment

Simultaneous application of anti-Parkinson’s disease drugs with certain foods and other drugs may affect the absorption, distribution, biotransformation and excretion of the anti-Parkinson’s disease drugs, thus altering the pharmacological effects of the drugs and causing adverse reactions. If some can make the anti-Parkinson’s disease drugs to enhance or reduce the effect; some make the adverse reactions increase, toxicity enhancement. Diet can also affect its efficacy or may produce adverse reactions, that is, the main food to be avoided. (1) High-protein diet: It has been recognized that certain foods have an effect on the absorption of levodopa, especially a high-protein diet, which can significantly reduce the efficacy of levodopa. Because of some neutral amino acids produced in protein digestion, it can compete with levodopa into the bloodstream and affect the absorption of levodopa. Therefore, protein intake should be reasonably distributed, and a low-protein diet should be considered when necessary. The recommended daily protein intake of 0.8g per kilogram of body weight can eliminate this undesirable interaction between food and drugs. (2) Avoid cholinomimetic foods (e.g. betel nut): anticholinergics (e.g. antan, benzyltropine, etc.) commonly used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease should be avoided in conjunction with cholinomimetic foods to avoid decreasing the therapeutic efficacy of the anticholinergics. (3) In the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, it is important to consider the possibility that diet has the potential to reduce or counteract the effects of anti-Parkinson’s disease medications, or aggravate the condition.