Stimulants Does l-dopa increase the potency of sympathomimetics?

[the_integerian]

I take 100 mg of herbal l-dopa every morning and 100 mg of 5-htp every night for depression. I used to use ephedrine for my asthma and I noticed that when I used the ephedrine after I had taken the l-dopa the ephedrine effects were pronounced, whereas if I took ephedrine alone I would barely feel anything. Recently I have been using propylhexedrine (yes, I know it can be dangerous to take propylhexedrine internally blah blah blah blah). Most reports I have read from users say that the person ingested the entire cotton rod from the benzedrex inhaler (250 mg) or even more than one rod. If I eat half the rod I get a feeling VERY similar to a moderate dose of methylphenidate or amphetamine. Could my sensitivity to the propylhexedrine be due to my daily l-dopa intake?

 

[sekio]

No, the reason you feel good it's because propylhexidrine is basically a weaker analog of methamphetamine. Ephedrine is weaker still.

L-DOPA doesn't even cross into the brain unless you start combining it with drugs that stop it from being metabolized. This is only ever seen in Parkinson's disease patients, and hence it's unlikely your supplementation is doting anything.

 

[rangrz]

^
actually, a very common and easy to obtain peripheral dopa-decarboxylase inhibitor is found in white, green and black tea. (white and green having more then black IFRC) So if your drinking tea with your l-dopa, you will increase brain dopamine levels.

 

[the_integerian]

I've taken the l-dopa supplement for a while and I know for a fact that it causes a mental change and is definitely NOT placebo. My question was whether or not it increased the potency of sympathomimetics.

 

[Mr-Tambourine-Man]

I take l-tyrosine and notice a pronounced effect. It really potentiates my Adderall and Vyvanse and takes away any crash I might experience. Good stuff.

 

[cashmunny]

No, the reason you feel good it's because propylhexidrine is basically a weaker analog of methamphetamine. Ephedrine is weaker still.

L-DOPA doesn't even cross into the brain unless you start combining it with drugs that stop it from being metabolized. This is only ever seen in Parkinson's disease patients, and hence it's unlikely your supplementation is doting anything.

I thought it was dopamine that couldn't cross the BBB. L-dopa get's carried across by the large neutral amino acid solute carrier transporter LAT1. Where it then get's converted to dopamine by the enzyme aromatic amino acid decarboxylase.

 

[sekio]

only a small amount of L-DOPA is actually transported, most of it is metabolized outside of the blood-brain barrier.