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Is Grapefruit Interacting with Your Medications?
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If you eat fresh grapefruit or drink grapefruit juice, you should know that it could affect medications you may be taking to control your blood pressure. A study from the Mayo Clinic found that grapefruit interferes with the body's ability to break down some heart medications, including many of the calcium-channel blockers. When that happens, the drugs accumulate in the body and can reach toxic blood levels.
Here is what's known about antihypertensive drugs/calcium-channel blockers and grapefruit juice:
- Do interact:
- amlodipine (Norvasc)
- felodipine (Plendil)
- nifedipine (e.g., Procardia, Adalat)
- nimodipine (Nimotop)
- nisoldipine (Sular)
- Do not interact:
- diltiazem (e.g., Cardizem, Tiazac)
- verapamil (e.g., Calan, Isoptin)
Grapefruit juice interacts with some drugs taken to lower cholesterol, too. If you are also taking these medications (statins), click here to see the information on interactions with those on lifeclinic.com's Cholesterol site.
Source: Grapefruit dangers. Heart Watch, November 2000.
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