Most medications can be taken at any time and do not need to be specially
timed in relation to mealtimes. If you take levodopa
though the timing of your medication should be discussed with your doctor as
food can interfere with the absorption of levodopa.
Protein, found mainly in meat, dairy products, eggs, fish, nuts and pulses,
is known to particularly interfere with the levodopa absorption and you may be
advised to take all your daily protein in one meal at the end of the day, thus
allowing levodopa to work more effectively throughout the rest of the day.
In this case you will need to make your other meals up from low protein
foods such as carbohydrates, vegetables, fruit, sweets and fats. Your
doctor will advise on when to take your medication and may suggest that you
take levodopa 45 minutes before a meal, ideally with some carbohydrate such as
a biscuit. It may also be taken an hour prior to a meal on an empty
stomach so as to avoid the protein problem but this may cause nausea.
It is best to avoid taking antacid/indigestion tablets at the same time as
Parkinson's medications as they too can interfere with medicine
absorption. They can however generally be safely taken at a different
time to your medications.
It may be helpful to sip a drink in order to help you swallow your tablets
but remember not to drink milk, a protein, when taking levodopa.
Those with advanced Parkinson's may find that foods rich in carbohydrate and
sugar can worsen dyskinesia. However it is important not to exclude carbohydrate from the diet as
they are important in maintaining body weight and energy levels so as with all
nutrients, a sensible balance is recommended.
Special diets for Parkinson’s
Some foods, vitamins or special diets are sometimes recommended as being
beneficial to those with Parkinson's but there is generally no scientific
evidence to support these. Broad beans (fava beans) are reputed to help
Parkinson's symptoms as they contain levodopa but unfortunately in such small
and variable amounts that they cannot be effective. The quantity that
would necessary in order to obtain an effective amount of levodopa would probably
cause illness or other side effects so this is not recommended. Dietary
‘wonders’ come and go and it is always best to discuss any ideas with your
doctor or dietician.
