05-09-2014, 04:37
Mucuna is just dilute L-DOPA, which mainstream medicine considers too dangerous to use except in Parkinson's where the patients can no longer produce enough of their own dopamine. L-DOPA is what causes Parkinson's patients to eventually wiggle uncontrollably (dyskinesia). Additionally, you could be desensitizing your dopamine receptors and/or downregulating the levels of your enzymes that produce your own L-DOPA.
Prescription L-DOPA is combined with carbidopa to prevent it from being converted to dopamine outside of the brain. (Premature conversion causes side effects and wastes the drug. The same is true of 5-HTP. Unlike tryptophan, 5-HTP becomes serotonin outside of the brain, which can cause heart valve fibrosis or pulmonary hypertension.)
Prescription L-DOPA is combined with carbidopa to prevent it from being converted to dopamine outside of the brain. (Premature conversion causes side effects and wastes the drug. The same is true of 5-HTP. Unlike tryptophan, 5-HTP becomes serotonin outside of the brain, which can cause heart valve fibrosis or pulmonary hypertension.)