Category: fava beans

I understand that it is possible to supplement Parkinsons medications with fava beans. I take meds 5x / day, have had Parkinson’s for 8 years and am 60 years old. My symptoms are fairly well controlled except for a mild tremor.

My neurologist suggested that I not “play around” with fava beans because it would cause spikes in dopamine……………

My question: Should I take an equal amount of fava bean [eg. 1 tsp. ] each time I take my meds to keep the dopamine level steady?

Carolyn

Clearly, it is always best to follow the recommendations of your doctor. I do have some evidence on fava beans that are used to supplement dopamine which I discussed below

About Fava Beans 

I have talked now with a number of people who supplement their medications with fava beans. Fava beans grow in pods much like green beans and are a food that has been around for thousands of years. The bean pods are clearly most effective when they are very young and green, even before a string like fiber forms along the pod.

You can eat the beans after steaming them or boiling them in water. Of course, you can add the seasonings that you like to most like sea salt, butter or herbs.

The best effect comes from eating fava beans that are green and fresh. You can shell them, though some people like eating the shells. Or, you  can grind them up, add them to other foods or beverages or take them like a pill.

Alternatively, you can boil or steam them till they are tender. Add them to salads. The more you cook them, the more they are cooked, the less dopamine enhancing value they will have.

The stories of success vary depending on the person. May I suggest that you click on the categories “fava beans” listed to the right of this post. You will be able to read some of what I have discovered about fava beans there. Fava beans are an attractive option for some people because they are a natural food, though it is always possible some people may have allergies to them.

Cooked fava beans may give you a tiny boast, but the potency can be mostly “cooked out.” Some people grind the raw beans. Other people grind the leaves and roots with good effect.

Other people report good results from growing their own fava beans, harvesting them and then grinding the beans (and/or leaves and stems). If the fava beans are grown commercially they may not have sufficient “charge” and thus have little effect, as is the case with all supplements. This is why some people with the symptoms of Parkinsons are starting to grow their own fava beans.

The concerns of your neurologist are certainly well founded. If the fava beans that you take have a sufficient charge of dopamine, it will overload your body with too much dopamine. Some people I interview consult with doctors who help them adjust their medications as they begin to take the dopamine.

Best results when you supplement parkinsons medications with fava beans is to consider using Aunt Beans fava bean tincture that Aunt Bean invented and uses to reverse her Parkinson’s symptoms. You can find instructions on how to make the tincture from this Parkinsons Recovery website: https://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Parkinsons Recovery
www.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Greetings, can you please give me the title of your booklet on sprouting fava beans?

many thanks

Darrell

This is a little handbook that has been written by Aunt Bean, It is available as a free download from the Parkinsons Recovery Fava Bean website here:

http://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Robert Rodgers PhD
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery
Road to Recovery from Parkinsons Disease

Aunt Bean was a guest on my radio show last year.  She invented a tincture which she makes herself from fava beans she grows on her farm in Tennessee. Her tincture has provided her with sustained relief from the symptoms of Parkinsons that she currently experiences.

I have had a flurry of requests from people wanting to know her “secret” tincture recipe. Aunt Bean has now written up the instructions on how to make the tincture yourself.

You certainly cannot buy Aunt Bean’s fava bean tincture at your local health food store. It is not available on the the internet. If you want it you are going to have to grow your own fava beans and make the tincture yourself.

Here is a genuine self help program of recovery at its best: You have to do a little work to help yourself feel better but the payoff is well worth the trouble. Just ask Aunt Bean.

To learn the step by step process (which is really not that cumbersome), visit the Parkinsons Recovery fava bean website. I posted  Aunt Bean’s instructions on how to make the fava bean tincture today.

http://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Road to Recovery from Parkinsons Disease
http://www.parkinsonsdisease.me

Could you please send me the fava bean tincture instructions? Thank you very much with a lot of respect

Yelena

Instructions involve using the tips of the fava bean plants and placing them in alcohol for about 6 weeks. The person who invented this approach is Aunt Bean who blogs on the Parkinsons Recovery fava bean website. I know she has been experimenting with various formulas.

She has a download of fava bean tincture instructions on the Parkinsons Recovery fava bean website. The address to claim the download is:

http://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery
Road to Recovery from Parkinsons Disease

I have very early symptoms and would to try fava beans for Parkinsons before medication. I found blanched and shelled beans but I don’t know if they have enough dopa to make them worthwhile or how to prepare them to retain the maximum dopa.

Can you give me some advice?

Thank you

Joe

Eating fava beans are a delicious, natural food in themselves that also happen to enhance dopamine in the body. For regular updates on fava beans for Parkinsons be sure and become a regular visitor of the Parkinsons Recovery Fava Bean blog sponsored by Aunt Bean who has a four acre farm in Tennessee where she grows fava beans and mucuna.

http://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

You will get the most mileage out of the value of fava beans if you sprout them first. Aunt Bean formulates a homemade tincture using the tips of the fava bean plants. Why not consider growing your own – as does Aunt Bean?

Keep in mind that ingesting fava beans in whatever form may have an effect on your medication, so be sure and consult with your doctor about any adjustments that may be required if you decide to add fava beans to your diet.

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery

Question:

What is the best way to cook fava beans for relief of the symptoms of Parkinsons Disease?

Gino

Response:

I forwarded this question to Aunt Bean who is a resident expert on everything there is to know about fava beans and how they have the potential to offer relief from the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. I post regular correspondence from Aunt Bean on the Fava Bean Website (http://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com) sponsored by Parkinsons Recovery.

Dry Fava Beans do not have as much l-dopa as the sprouts.  Sprouts are the best way to get l-dopa supplementation.  They are easy to do.

You just soak the beans overnight  (about a 1/2 Cup in a bowl)  In the morning drain & rinse them well. Drain them well and cover with a paper towel to keep light out.  Rinse and drain well 3 times a day until they start to sprout. It only takes about 3 days. Then rinse well and let them stand in water about 15 minutes to soften the skins.

Drain & remove the skins.  Rinse well again. Then put into a steamer (beans not in water)     & steam covered for 6 minutes after the water starts boiling good.  Remove from steam  Rinse with cold water. Dry. Put on a plate or cookie sheet in a single layer to freeze.  Then after about 45 minutes put in a plastic freezer zip lock and freeze
until needed.

Experiment with eating 2 or 3 every couple of hours or/ just in the in between times when you are not taking meds…everyone is so different & so are the doses of meds & time schedules and activity levels…you will have to find your own dose amount and how often to take them.   Always start with a small amount as with any medicine…They are medicine…just a natural whole food medicine for us.

Also, remember to have a G6 PD blood test done to make sure you are ok to take them(having the right enzymes necessary , or they can hurt you!)  Also, ask your physician if you are on any MAOI’s…fava supplementing can cause a quick and dangerous rise in Blood Pressure when mixed with these drugs. Let your doctor know, so  they can work with you and be aware of your experimenting!

Goya Favas usually sprout well. If you wish to cook dry fava beans:  Soak them overnight to hydrate them. Then rinse well in the morning and put in clean water and cook til tender.  After they are coked, they taste great stir fried with garlic & onion.  YUM

God Bless!

Aunt Bean

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Parkinsons Recovery

Books
Road to Recovery from Parkinsons Disease
Pioneers of Recovery
Five Steps to Recovery

Resources
Vibration Therapy
Dehydration Therapy: Aquas
Parkinsons Recovery Membership
Parkinsons Recovery Chat Room
Eye Drops for Cataracts
Symptom Tracker
Parkinson’s Disease News

The following are questions I asked Sandra who grows her own fava beans for Parkinsons and harvests them herself to treat the symptoms of Parkinson’s.

Can fava beans be used in conjunction with other medications?

They do not appear to conflict with sinemet, but there is a fine balance between not enough l-dopa and too much. If my friend eats too many beans with her Sinemet dose..she appears to be drunk and tends to fall.

It would be great if each person’s body metabolism were the same and a clear dose could be established, but it doesn’t work that way. It has been our experience that most doctors are not familiar with fava beans and other natural remedies, and will likely advise Sinemet or other PD meds. I have chosen to stay away from synthetic l-dopa & stick with what I know and consider natural, so that my body can stay at it’s optimal health.

Do doctors prescribe fava beans??

In Europe, people have used favas for PD therapy for a long time. Favas are also a very popular food in Europe. In the United States, most people have never heard of favas. However, there is a product called Balance D that is available in the US, a supplement containing fava, by Neuroscience. It was recommended to my friend by her doctor.

Do you have a website that would help people understand the use of fava beans and how to grow them?

There is a man in Canada, Ken Allan, who has been so much support to me in this adventure with the favas. He also has PD and has grown and used them to supplement his sinemet for several years now.

Parkinsons Recovery has also set up a website specifically for fava beans: https://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Is there a fava bean support group where people can get answers to their questions about growing and using the beans?

No, not that I am aware of, but it is a great idea. Could Parkinsons Recovery start an online support group where people could share valuable information about fava beans and their uses and how to grow them?

I am happy to share the little bit of information that we have gleaned over the past 12 months. I pray that many of your listeners will be encouraged to grow their own favas and that we will find people interested in doing valuable research on these amazing fava beans. May God Bless You. Sandra

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery

The following are answers to the question: Are fava beans hard to grow – by Sandra who grows her own fava beans as a remedy for the symptoms of Parkinson’s.

Robert Rodgers PhD
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery

About Fava Beans

They were a pleasure to grow for me, but some people would consider them difficult. Some of the plants become tall, depending on the variety of fava and on the composition of the soil. Ours had to be staked to prevent them from falling over when they reach about 4 foot. (Falling over can break the plant/ or they sometimes start getting discolored leaves and beans because of close contact to the ground..neither of which I wanted). So, I hammered stakes in each row with about 6 plants in between, and did what is called a Florida weave to secure them in upright position.

I learned to do this when growing a field of tomatoes one year. When done properly, a whole field can be tied in a very short time. A couple of weeks later. A second level of string is used to envelope the plants as they grow taller.

The biggest time consumer is hammering stakes if you grow a large crop. The plants are very hardy and ours survived temperatures down to 26 degrees here in Tennessee. When it dropped lower, they were hit hard……though it looks like they may come back from the roots possibly if the weather ever warms up again.

This is the coldest winter I have seen here. Favas like cool weather. They are actually in the pea family/ and not a bean. They do not tolerate very hot weather. I plan to plant my spring crop, Lord willing, in the end of February or first of March. Once you look at the beautiful, and prolific flowers on the plants, you will see why the bees and other insects migrate to your favas…they are amazing.

I found that soaking the seeds for about 2 days, until they begin to sprout, is best and then setting them directly out into the soil about 10 inches apart and 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep. Once they have developed their first 2 leaves, the root is close to a foot long. They are a good soil builder and bring a lot of nutrients up to the surface from deep in the ground. They are used as “cover crops” in some places plowed under to fertilize the soil, and then the area is replanted.

Where can a person get fava beans if they cannot grow their own?

We have not yet located a source for young/ green/ immature pods. I have come across dried beans in several markets, and even full sized bean pods in Earth Fare…but neither of these will give the l-dopa we need for PD.

You may find a local farmer who would be willing to raise a crop for you. You would have to specify the length you want the beans / or go pick them yourself & come home & process them immediately… so as not to loose the medicinal qualities of the beans. It is best to grow/ harvest & process your own and this will be a priority for me as long as I am able.

The beans (seeds) themselves , whether green or dry, contain very little levadopa….it is the leaves, stems, and the pods surrounding the bean seeds that contain the levadopa.

What follows is Sandra’s answer to my question about how she goes about preparing her fava bean tincture.

I have found that picking the immature pods at about 2 1/2 inches is the best for us. They have a great buttery taste and no strings. We steam them for about 6 minutes, then freeze them on cookie sheets for about 15 minutes, then place them in freezer bags and return them to the freezer. My friend enjoys them the right from the freezer…2-4 pods with her sinemet dose .. Bean chips & cookies were made by putting large favas (past the stage of eating the pod) through a Champion Juicer, which takes out all the indigestible fiber, etc. ..and using that juice to make tasty l-dopa treats. We keep our “treats” frozen and use them to ward off symptoms. They are great also for car trips, just to carry along if needed. The possibilities are endless.

You prepare a tincture from the fava beans you grow in your grow. Tell us more about how you make your tincture

I wanted something that would capture the essence and l-dopa of the plant, and preserve it. Mainly, because there is the problem of having to grow a year’s supply of pods and freeze them. There is always a possibility of a power outage and a years supply would be lost. Since I have been making Echinacea tincture for years from my garden I wondered,

Could I formulate a fava bean tincture from the fava bean plant?

A specific part of the plant captured my attention, so I went through-out the garden harvesting these little “tops”…a little hidden, protected part of the plant. They were placed in a dehydrator to dry and then into a jar with brandy. This was shaken for a month, several times a day. Then, it was strained.

It looked good, and I played the part of a white experimental rat and took several drops to see what would happen. I didn’t see any change right away, but later, went outside and was coming up the steps and noticed that I didn’t halt on my right hip/leg like I always did. I went back down & climbed up the steps again. It wasn’t my imagination. Started trying other things that I usually couldn’t do…and kept noticing other improvements…..it was easy to drive the car, my reaction time was much improved. The list went on on.

I decided to take another drop at bedtime…and actually got a good night’s sleep. I have been using the tincture now since October 9th. Still no side effects, besides lack of Parkinson’s disease symptoms. If I feel symptoms starting…I just take a couple of drops and in about 15 minutes I don’t notice them anymore.

Ken Alan…a fellow PD patient has been growing favas for a few years. I sent him some of my fava bean tincture and he “kitchen tested it”. He wrote back that there was approximately 1 mg levadopa in 2 drops tincture. I have been taking this small dose 3 to 4 times a day to alleviate my symptoms.

Can you provide your fava bean tincture to other people?

No. I feel that much research needs to be done on the tincture, and perhaps a better base can be found to draw out even more of the levadopa than brandy. I plan to experiment in the spring with wine vinegar for tincture. But, I cannot test for levadopa and each batch will be slightly different, because of the soil area in which the favas are grown / the time of year the top is harvested/and the chosen liquid base for the tincture.

I want to make a plea for someone, or perhaps a medical school to take on the fava project that I started. I will help in any way I can to make this valuable way of using favas available to other people with Parkinson’s disease who would benefit from it, as I have.

A free download of Aunt Beans Fava Bean recipe is available at: https://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery

I have had Parkinsons for 20 years and have just started growing my own Fava Beans . We read that the leaves and stems have dopamine also and so decided to try leaf tea and steamed leaves. So far after a week, we are obtaining good results .In am interested in knowing more about the fava bean tincture.

We would like to know if any other Parkinson’s patient you have interviewed have used the leaves or leaf tea?

Patricia

I have talked with one woman with Parkinsons who also grows her own fava beans with resounding success. She lives in a relatively cold climate. Her season for growing the plants is relatively short which poses unique challenges for her.

Aunt Bean grows fava bean plants every summer on her farm in Tennessee. She harvests the tips of the plants at the end of the summer and uses them to make a fava bean tincture which she takes to suppress her symptoms. Instructions on how to make the fava bean tincture are available on the Parkinsons Recovery fava bean website:

https://www.favabeans.parkinsonsrecovery.com 

Some people purchase fava beans from commercial sources. I have received many inquires asking what company is a reliable source. Here is what I have discovered. Some companies send out high quality fava beans which work beautifully for people, then send a batch which fizzles. To my knowledge, there is no reliable commercial source of fava beans.

Why is this? They are not grown in the wild. Here is what I learned about herbs like fava beans in my interview with Andrew Bentley who is a herbalist. Andrew is one of the 14 pioneers I interview for the Pioneers of Recovery.

Andrew tells me he also has not found a reliable, high quality source of fava beans for his own clients. This is quite amazing news, since his job as a herbalist is to use natural herbs to help people get well.

Andrew explains in Pioneers of Recovery that herbs need to be grown in the wild in order to carry the energetic punch that is essential for making the herbs work well. His argument makes good sense to me. Herbs grown in the wild are infused with the energy or the earth. Herbs grown in commercial fields lack this divine infusion of healing energy. Andrew harvests all his herbs in the wild. He purchases nothing from commercial companies.

Growing your own fava beans may be just like growing them in the wild. I would encourage anyone with the symptoms of Parkinsons to follow your lead. Ingesting fava beans does help many people get relief from their symptoms. Other people supplement their regular medications with fava beans and find they are able to reduce their dosage significantly. As with any herbal therapy, everyone does not see significant relief but many are.

Some people order fava beans from a commercial source, found it did not make any difference and concluded that the bean does not help give them relief from symptoms. It is very possible that the problem was not the fava bean itself, but the source from where it was acquired.

Please keep us all appraised of your exciting project.

Robert Rodgers, Ph.D.
Founder 2004
Parkinsons Recovery