5 foods and beverages you should never consume when on medicines

Some drinks and foods should not be combined with prescription medications.

When your doctor prescribes certain drugs, there are specific drinks and foods you should avoid in order for the drugs to operate properly.

Chocolate and sleeping, depression, and anxiety pills

Dark chocolate, in particular, may affect the effectiveness of sleep-inducing drugs such as zolpidem tartrate (Ambien) and methylphenidate (Ritalin) for hyperactive people. Taking an MAO inhibitor, which is used to treat depression with chocolate, can result in dangerously high blood pressure.

Antibiotics and dairy products
Calcium in dairy products like milk, cheese, and yoghurt can prevent antibiotics like tetracycline and ciprofloxacin from being absorbed. This reduces the medication’s ability to treat infections. Calcium-containing foods should be avoided an hour before or two hours after taking these medicines.

Drugs that decrease cholesterol and grapefruit
Grapefruit, a citrus fruit, has been shown to have an effect on over 50 medications in the gut, making some less effective and others too potent, particularly cholesterol-lowering drugs such as atorvastatin.

Grapefruit and grapefruit juice consumption can block an enzyme required for statin metabolism, raising the likelihood of adverse effects such as muscle soreness. The most dangerous statins include atorvastatin, lovastatin, and simvastatin, all of which are routinely found in cholesterol-lowering medications.

Patients taking statins are recommended to avoid grapefruit and grapefruit juice completely.

Fruit juice and most drugs

Apple or orange juice can lower beta-blocker levels, such as Tenormin and Tekturna, which prevent strokes, heart attacks, and renal difficulties.

Antihistamines for allergies, even newer generation antihistamines, can interact with acidic juices such as apple, orange, and grapefruit, reducing absorption and neutralising the impact of these treatments.

Grapefruit juice should be avoided by persons taking calcium channel blockers since it can render the medicine ineffective. If you are taking malaria medication, you should also avoid orange juice.

The majority of drugs and alcohol
Alcohol can reduce therapeutic efficacy, weaken blood pressure and cardiac medications, or increase their effect and induce hazardous side effects.