Grapefruit Can Kill You!

Mitch, good to hear from another SC brother, ltns

Actually read another story just like yours, about the deadly consequences of grapefruit juice with
certain medications. It's actually a valid. potentially dangerous situation.

Thanks for bringing it our attention

david also in sc

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grapefruit_drug_interactions

Has a listing of drugs that are affected.

I knew there was a reason I did not like it.

Thanks

Also, Pumelo is considered grapefruit family and I may have eaten a couple pieces at the wrong time with my drug protocol, it may have been what messed me up recently, not sure on all that but maybe it effected me. I knew about grapefruit but might have forgot when wife cut up Pumelo and gave me a couple pieces.  Good you posted it, it is a real no no with Ketoconazole.

Post Edited (zufus) : 1/22/2013 6:24:07 PM (GMT-7)

My pharmacist pointed this out as potentially very serious when I got my first BP prescription filled.

My doctor warned me about eating grapefruit when taking my statin medication

There goes the grapefruit diet! We love grapefruit and did eat Pomelo when we lived in Malaysia, as no grapefruit grows there.

I will need to look at it for any contra-indications with Jalyn, that I am on. Funny that I haven't seen many obituaries pointing out the people who have died from grapefruit interactions.

I use to love and eat a Florida Indian River Ruby Red grapefruit every day for breakfast. That ended when I started on BP meds 12 years ago and was told by my doctor that grapefruit can interfere with the absorption of many drugs and the way they react in your body. BTW my mother in law sends us a box of Ruby Red Grapefruit for Christmas every year, I think she is trying to tell me something.

Terry

In general, grapefruit interactions increase the effective dosage of the drug, either by increasing absorption or by interfering with the breakdown. Interesting.

And (totally unrelated, I assure you) I notice that the PDE5i drugs are on the list...

Once I am done with my ADT I will have to check that list again to see if I can eat a grapefruit for breakfast every day.

Reb,

I went Googling, looking for research to back up your passion fruit theory, and I came up with blueberries instead. Apparently they improve your bone.

www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2011/110621.htm

"Compounds in blueberries helped build strong bones in laboratory rats, according to an ARS-funded study led by investigator Jin-Ran Chen"

Who knew?

With other Men's Health medications like Sildenafil Citrate (Viagra, Silagra) and Tadalafil (Cialis, Tadacip), grapefruit juice inhibits the body's absorption of the medication. The substances in the juice that do this are called furanocoumarins. They activate one of the body's naturally-produced drug efflux mechanisms, known as P-glycoprotein, located in the intestinal tract. When grapefruit juice interacts with P-glycoprotein, the result is an increased likelihood that certain drugs will be stopped from entering the bloodstream. Viagra and Cialis are therefore less effective when grapefruit juice is present in the body.

There are more than 50 commonly-prescribed drugs that use the same pathways and have the same negative interactions with grapefruit juice, including those prescribed for the treatment of high cholesterol, depression, high blood pressure, cancer, pain, Erection (Erectile) Dysfunction and allergies.

Research about the interaction of grapefruit juice with drugs suggests that compounds in grapefruit juice, called furanocoumarins (e.g. bergamottin), may be responsible for the effects of grapefruit juice. Researchers believe that furanocoumarins block the enzymes in the intestines that normally break down many drugs. One glass of grapefruit juice could elicit the maximum blocking effect, and the effect may persist for longer than 24 hours. Since the effects can last for such a prolonged period of time, grapefruit juice does not have to be taken at the same time as the medication in order for the interaction to occur. Therefore, unlike similar interactions, where the interaction can be avoided by separating the administration of the two interacting agents by a couple of hours, administration of grapefruit juice with susceptible drugs should be separated by 24 or more hours to avoid the interaction. Since this is not practical for individuals who are taking a medication daily, they should not consume grapefruit juice when taking medications that are affected by grapefruit juice.