Back in June, Dr. Gardner mentioned macuna pruriens for Parkinson’s Disease. How much and how often? Is there a recommended brand? Thanks.
Macuna pruriens has levodopa as a natural ingredient. This is the immediate precursor for dopamine, which is deficient or non-functional in Parkinsons.
I’ve used the product from Neuroscience called Balance D, which is available on [...]
Sign up for our free report 
"Comparison of Alternative Medicine and Conventional Medicine" and daily health secrets.
"Comparison of Alternative Medicine and Conventional Medicine" and daily health secrets.
Stan M. Gardner, MD, was trained in traditional Western medicine. He received a Bachelor of Science in Biology at Utah State University, attended medical school in the Philippines (where he learned firsthand about alternative methods of healing), did a residency in Pediatrics at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and practiced conventional medicine for 15 years. He has practiced alternative and energy medicine for over 10 years.
I am also very excited to see your website and your blog. Sometimes the “whole foods” industry can be very confusing and contradictory and I look forward to the information you will be able to provide.
— Marilyn
-
Talk with the Doc
My doctor says I can get all the vitamins and minerals I need from my food. What is your opinion on this?
I used to say the same thing to my patients, back in the days before I studied healthy alternatives. It is the party line of allopathic medicine, although that is starting to change. Here's the bottom line, and I'll follow up with some info on what allopaths are now doing:
There is a difference between prevention of disease and being truly healthy, and much of that has to do with ingesting adequate nutrients. Unfortunately, we all have different requirements, and the nutrition from our food is not as good as it was 50 years ago. We also have greater exposure to toxins, which places an additional load on the body for detoxification. Stress also increases the need for extra vitamins.
I strongly believe that we cannot be optimally healthy without a good basic vitamin regimen with essential fatty acids. On top of that, most of us have other needs that can be addressed with supplements instead of medications.
Allopathic medicine now supports giving folic acid for pregnant women, vitamin D and calcium for osteoporosis, and I recently had a patient tell me her ophthalmologist prescribed lutein and other antioxidants for macular degeneration. There is now an omega 3 fish oil by prescription for heart support and inflammation.