Know Your Food-Drug Interactions
5 Common Food-Drug Interactions
It is very important to be aware of foods that can interact
with medications because this can cause them to not work to their full
potential or cause adverse effects. It is ultimately important to always read
drug warning labels. Here are 5 common food-drug interactions to be aware of:
Grapefruit juice is can have interactions with drugs in many
ways. Grapefruit juice affects medications because it contains furanocoumarins.
These compounds differentiate grapefruit from other citrus fruits. First, it
can increase the absorption of certain drugs such as some cholesterol-lowering
statins. Also, grapefruit juice can cause the body to abnormally metabolize
certain medications such as antihistamines, blood pressure drugs, birth
control, and thyroid replacement drugs.
Green leafy vegetables are another food that can interact
with medications due to high amounts of vitamin K which helps blood to clot.
Therefore, blood thinning medications such as warfarin (Coumadin) can be
affected by green leafy vegetables. This does not mean that green leafy greens
should be avoided altogether - as long as they are consumed in a consistent
amount (no significant increases or decreases).
Black licorice contains the natural ingredient glycyrrhiza.
Glycyrrhiza can deplete body potassium while also causing an increased
retention of sodium. Depleted body potassium can be dangerous when using the
heart failure drug digoxin, which can result in the heart not beating properly.
Glycyrrhiza can decrease the effectiveness of high blood pressure medications
and will break down the drug warfarin which will increase the body’s clotting
mechanism. It should also be noted that glycyrrhiza is found in natural
licorice and it is not contained in artificially flavored black licorice.
Salt substitutes often replace sodium with potassium which
is a concern for individuals who are taking digoxin or ACE inhibitors. Digoxin
is used for heart failure and increasing potassium decreases the effectiveness
of it. ACE inhibitors are known to increase potassium, so by consuming even
more potassium through salt substitutes, blood potassium levels may increase
significantly.
Some common foods that contain the amino acid tyramine
include chocolate, aged cheese, smoked/aged meats, hot dogs, lunch meats,
fermented soy products, and draft beer. High blood levels of tyramine can cause
an increase in blood pressure. Several medications including MAOIs (monoamine oxidase
inhibitors) and Parkinson’s disease medications can interfere with the
breakdown of tyramine. Therefore, it is very important for individuals on these
medications to avoid tyramine-rich foods.
KH
The salt substitutes seems like an important one to know. It is likely if a patient is taking one of those medications they are likely also on a low sodium diet for hypertension, as diseases like those tend to compound with each other. We know that excess potassium intake is very dangerous for the heart, so it would seem particularly dangerous for a patient being treated for heart failure.
ReplyDelete-CK
This topic was a great review over some major interactions right before starting a clinical rotation. I knew the basics, but it was a great refresher to get the details on how these foods interact with drugs and why it is important. The Tyramine interaction was new information for me and I found it interesting since many of the foods it is found in are high in sodium as well, making it especially important to avoid in order to prevent blood pressure increases.
ReplyDeleteAC