The biggest two that seem to occur the most is interactions with anticoagulants or blood thinning drugs and diabetic medications. Many herbs tend to have affect these drugs by either making them not work properly, or increasing their effects (Which is not a good thing usually.)
There are also herbs that can make medications like contraceptives less effective, as well as increase the already known side effects of drugs such as the liver toxicity of acetaminophen. It is incredibly important to tell your doctor before you start using any kind of herbal supplement or medicine as it may effect the current medication you're on.
Here are just a few herbs that have drug interactions to watch out for when deciding what is best for you:
Black Cohosh - May increase the liver toxicity of medications such as acetaminophen, alcohol, and atorvastatin. These drugs are broken down by the liver and taking Black Cohosh while on these may allow them to build up in the liver causing liver problems. While this is more of a concern than an absolute fact, it's still better to be on the cautious side.
Cranberry - Taking Cranberry for a UTI is very common practice and the berries are full of vitamin C and other helpful constituents. It also can have an increasing effect on anticoagulants or blood thinners, causing increased bleeding risk.
Valerian - Valerian has been used to treat insomnia and anxiety and is considered a mild sedative. This can be very risky as Valerian alone has over 500 different drug interactions. It can worsen the sedative effects of other drugs and cause drowsiness, so do not take it without first consulting your doctor.
St. John's Wort - A common herb used to help treat depression, however it cannot be taken with any other form of anti-depressant. It has very negative effects when combined with SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor) like Prozac, TCA's (Tricyclic Antidepressants) like amoxapine, and MAO inhibitors (Monoamine oxidase inhibitors) like Zelapar. It can also affect anticoagulants like Warfarin, HIV medications, and birth control. It is believed that it make depression and anxiety worse with some anti depressants and can cause other drugs to be less effective.
Ginseng - Ginseng is often used as an herbal pick-me-up to help with mental alertness. While it is great at it's job, it can also cause problems with blood thinners and diabetic drugs such as insulin or oral hypoglycemics. It has a natural blood thinning effect which if mixed with a blood thinner could cause bruising or bleeding.
Ginkgo biloba - Ginkgo has been getting some pretty bad press as it was rather recently dis-proven to help improve the mental state of patients with Dementia and Alzheimer's disease. It takes another hit with some pretty severe drug interactions as it can make anti-viral drugs less effective, such as those used for HIV. It can also react with anti-seizure medication, blood thinners, diabetes drugs as well as around 400-500 other drugs.
Ginger - While there is not too many reports of Ginger having drug interactions, it is important to note that it does prolong bleeding and should not be used with any kind of anticoagulant or blood thinner such as Warfarin. Make sure to stop using Ginger at least 2 weeks before you are due for any kind of surgery.
Hopefully this brings some light to the dangers and importance of drug interactions. It is always important to contact your doctor, a practitioner, and pharmacist or do your own research to see if there are any drug interactions with the herbs you are taking.
It is also a good idea to ask a professional if you have prior health problems, such as increased bleeding risk, before using any kind of herbal supplement or medicine.
Stay safe!
~ Lindsey Shemwell (The Budding Botanist)
No comments:
Post a Comment