This review contains a critical appraisal of current knowledge about the use of beans in both animal models and patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The potential beneficial effects of beans in PD are increasingly being touted, not only in scientific journals but also by the lay media. While there is a long tradition in Ayurvedic medicine of prescribing extracts from Mucuna pruriens (MP), whose seeds contain 5% L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanin (L-DOPA), many other beans also contain L-DOPA (broad beans, common beans, and soybeans) or have other ingredients (coffee and cocoa) that may benefit PD patients. Indeed, bean-derived compounds can elicit neuroprotective effects in animal models of PD, while several studies in human PD patients have shown that motor performance can improve after ingestion of bean extracts. However, there are several arguments countering the view that beans serve as a natural therapy for PD: (i) the results from animal PD models are not necessarily directly applicable to humans; (ii) beans have many bioactive ingredients, some of which can be harmful in large doses; (iii) studies in human PD patients are scarce and only report on the effects of single doses or the administration of bean extract over short periods of time; and (iv) no data on long-term efficacy or side effects of bean therapy are available. Therefore, reservations about the use of beans as a “natural” therapy for PD seem to be justified.

中文翻译：

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在帕金森病中了解你的豆类：对不同豆类及其化合物在治疗帕金森病和动物模型中的当前知识的批判性评估。

这篇综述包含对目前关于在动物模型和帕金森氏病 (PD) 患者中使用豆类的知识的批判性评估。豆类在 PD 中的潜在有益作用越来越多地被吹捧，不仅在科学期刊上，而且在非专业媒体上也是如此。虽然在 Ayurvedic 医学中有一个悠久的传统，即使用Mucuna pruriens的提取物进行处方(MP)，其种子含有 5% L-3,4-二羟基苯丙氨酸 (L-DOPA)，许多其他豆类也含有 L-DOPA（蚕豆、普通豆和大豆）或含有其他成分（咖啡和可可）可能使 PD 患者受益。实际上，源自豆类的化合物可以在 PD 动物模型中引发神经保护作用，而针对人类 PD 患者的几项研究表明，摄入豆类提取物后可以改善运动表现。然而，有几个论点反对豆类作为 PD 的自然疗法的观点：（i）动物 PD 模型的结果不一定直接适用于人类；(ii) 豆类含有许多生物活性成分，其中一些在大剂量下可能有害；(iii) 对人类 PD 患者的研究很少，仅报告了单次剂量或短时间内服用豆提取物的效果；(iv) 没有关于豆疗法的长期疗效或副作用的数据。因此，对使用豆类作为 PD 的“天然”疗法的保留意见似乎是有道理的。