The most serious culprit in this situation is grapefruit juice, which has unique properties when it comes to inactivating or overactivating medications. Grapefruit juice inhibits a crucial enzyme that normally functions to break down and metabolize many drugs, such as antiseizure drugs and statins used to lower cholesterol. The result? The overloaded liver can't metabolize the medication, resulting in an overdose, with potentially fatal consequences.
Other less serious interactions to be aware of include coffee and iron; the coffee inhibits absorption. Doctors say they frequently see coffee drinkers who take their iron in the morning with breakfast, yet their anemia doesn't go away because the iron isn't absorbed. Grapefruit interactions are serious enough that they're often listed on medication handouts, but many food and drink interactions aren't mentioned.
How to avoid it: When you get a new prescription, ask your doctor or a pharmacist whether you should take it with food, without food, and if there are any particular dietary issues to watch out for.
I was rushed to an ER when my sodium level dropped to 123....withing 3 pts of seizures, coma. Why? I was taking a popular med for high BP - Lisinopril 10 mg. The problem was that there were 3 letters past the name..HCT, which stands for hydrochlorothiazide, (a duretic). Never again will I take a med without knowing what the hct, hcl or whatever means! I learned a valuable lesson by a very dangerous combination.
Found article t/b very interesting. Thought I knew all of it, but reading it really hit home.