Why can't you eat grapefruit with certain medications?

Answer 1

"Grapefruit juice contains chemicals [called furanocoumarins] that can [inhibit] enzymes that break down certain types of medicines in your intestines. When a medicine does not get broken down properly in the intestines, you can end up with too much medicine in your blood. Having too much medicine in your blood increases your chances of having serious side effects."

Furanocoumarins are a form of allelochemicals, specific biomolecules produced by a plant that can induce suffering in, or give benefit to, another plant. Typical allelochemicals are produced by plants to fight off weeds.

There are over 50 medications affected by grapefruit juice in this way. "This effect has been observed in nearly all calcium channel blockers, a group of drugs used to control blood pressure. Some of them include Plendil, Procardia, and Nisocor. The effect has also been seen in Sandimmune, a drug that suppresses the immune system and sedatives, such as Xanax and Valium. The editorial also warns about the AIDS drug Invirase."

Answer 2

I don't know if there is a proven link but a number of people (myself included) experience painful headaches when drinking grapefruit juice at the same time as taking other medications.

Answer 3

It makes the medication be absorbed by your body too fast, so it's almost like getting an increased dosage of the medication. I take a couple of meds and the only ones that advises caution with grapefruit is BP (Norvasc) and choelesterol (Vytoryn).

Answer 4

the acid in the fruit counteracts the action of the medicine. Lipitor, or any other statin drugs are examples of this

Answer 5

I think it's becaus eof acids inside of the fruit that may cause a reaction.

Answer 6

Because it will effect the way the medicine works

Answer 7

i dont know but i've always wondered that too!

Answer 8

I didn't know that?!