Too many patients with Parkinson’s Disease have depression that could be helped with simple solutions. It is very understandable to experience depression when facing a Parkinson’s diagnoses. However, there is another very common type of depression that can be avoided or helped without the use of depression medications.
Carbidopa, the most commonly used Parkinson’s medication, may be the cause of much of the depression in many Parkinson’s patients. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that in large part affects feelings of joy and happiness. It is important to understand just a little of the biochemistry to understand how Carbidopa affects serotonin production. The precursor to serotonin is 5HTP and the enzyme that converts 5HTP to serotonin is a B6-mediated decarboxylase inhibitor.
Carbidopa is a decarboxylase inhibitor. The way Carbidopa works is that it inactivates B6, which is necessary for the decarboxylase enzyme to work. So if someone has been taking Carbidopa over a long period time their body would be so depleted of the vitamin B6 they would no longer be able to produce enough serotonin. Therefore, they would have symptoms of low serotonin levels, like depression.
Please contact us to gain more information on how to help with Carbidopa-induced depression symptoms.
