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Is it OK to eat grapefruit with blood pressure medicine?

Jim Brown

Is it OK to eat grapefruit with blood pressure medicine?

Though grapefruit does not interfere with most blood pressure medications, it can cause a few medications to overcorrect blood pressure.

What blood pressure meds should not be taken with grapefruit?

Only some medicines interact with grapefruit. Examples include medicines for: High cholesterol: atorvastatin (one brand: Lipitor) and simvastatin (one brand: Zocor) High blood pressure: felodipine (one brand: Plendil), nifedipine (one brand: Procardia), and nisoldipine (one brand: Sular)

What fruits interfere with high blood pressure medication?

People taking ACE inhibitors or ARBs should limit their intake of high-potassium foods like bananas, oranges, avocados, tomatoes, white and sweet potatoes and dried fruits —, especially apricots.

What tablets can’t you have grapefruit with?

Examples of common medications that interact with grapefruit juice include certain statin cholesterol drugs such as atorvastatin (Lipitor), lovastatin, simvastatin (Zocor), felodipine (Plendil) and other calcium channel blockers, clarithromycin (Biaxin), and loratadine (Claritin).

Is grapefruit bad for high blood pressure?

Grapefruit contains compounds that may interfere with how your body absorbs some drugs, including some blood pressure medicines. It can leave too much or too little of the drug in your bloodstream, which may be dangerous. Always ask your doctor or pharmacist if grapefruit could affect the medicine you’re taking.

Does lemon juice affect medications?

Interactions between your drugs No interactions were found between lemon and Vitamins. This does not necessarily mean no interactions exist. Always consult your healthcare provider.

Does grapefruit clear plaque in arteries?

In one study, animals fed a high-cholesterol diet plus grapefruit pectin had 24 percent narrowing of their arteries, versus the control with 45 percent narrowing. In other words, the pectin binds to cholesterol and helps to remove arterial buildup.

Can you drink grapefruit while taking blood pressure medicine?

The effect of the juice on these drugs can be small or large, and varies with the amount of grapefruit juice you drink. There are few blood pressure drugs that absolutely contra-indicated for use with grapefruit juice.

Are there any medications that do not work with grapefruit?

Amlodipine (Norvasc) is a calcium channel blocker like felodipine and nifedipine, which also does not interact with grapefruit ( 6 ). Though grapefruit does not interfere with most blood pressure medications, it can cause a few medications to overcorrect blood pressure. Grapefruit influences a few medications that treat abnormal heart rhythms.

Why is grapefruit juice bad for your health?

How Grapefruit Juice Can Interfere With Medications With most drugs that interact with grapefruit juice, “the juice lets more of the drug enter the blood,” Huang says. “When there is too much drug in the blood, you may have more side effects.”

How does grapefruit juice affect calcium channel blockers?

Grapefruit juice interacts with some calcium channel blockers and increases the level of the medicine in your blood. If you’re taking any of the medicines below, seek advice from your pharmacist or doctor if you wish to include grapefruit or grapefruit juice in your diet.

Is it OK to eat grapefruit with blood pressure medicine?

Jim Brown

Is it OK to eat grapefruit with blood pressure medicine?

Though grapefruit does not interfere with most blood pressure medications, it can cause a few medications to overcorrect blood pressure.

Is grapefruit juice good for high blood pressure?

1. Citrus fruits. Citrus fruits, including grapefruit, oranges, and lemons, may have powerful blood-pressure-lowering effects. They’re loaded with vitamins, minerals, and plant compounds that may help keep your heart healthy by reducing heart disease risk factors like high blood pressure ( 4 ).

What drug classes interact with grapefruit juice?

Prominent medications known to interact with grapefruit include statins, antiarrhythmic agents, immunosuppressive agents, and calcium channel blockers. There are equally effective alternatives to these drug classes that do not have the potential to interact with grapefruit.

What happens if you eat grapefruit while on statins?

Grapefruit contains a chemical that can interfere with your body’s ability to break down or metabolize certain statin medications. When statin takers eat large amounts of grapefruit, the level of statins in their blood can increase, raising the possibility of side effects.

What blood pressure meds should not be taken with grapefruit?

Here are examples of some types of drugs that grapefruit juice can cause problems (interact) with:

  • Some statin drugs to lower cholesterol, such as Zocor (simvastatin) and Lipitor (atorvastatin).
  • Some drugs that treat high blood pressure, such as Procardia and Adalat CC (both nifedipine).

Why is grapefruit bad for high blood pressure?

Grapefruit contains compounds that may interfere with how your body absorbs some drugs, including some blood pressure medicines. It can leave too much or too little of the drug in your bloodstream, which may be dangerous. Always ask your doctor or pharmacist if grapefruit could affect the medicine you’re taking.

Does grapefruit juice affect alcohol?

This meant that the taste of alcohol had to be masked, and after some experimentation Dr. Bailey concluded that grapefruit juice was up to the task. To the researchers’ surprise, the alcohol had no effect, but in both groups the blood levels of felodipine were three times higher than expected.

What drugs are bad with grapefruit?

Although antimicrobials are one of the most diverse categories of medications, there are only a few medications with known important grapefruit interactions:

  • Erythromycin.
  • Rilpivirine and related HIV drugs.
  • Primaquine and related antimalarial drugs.
  • Albendazole.