Let me Eat All the Foods I Love
including Grapefruit, Chocolate, Cheese, Pomegranate, Black Tea, Spinach and Licorice
by Mary Bamford, Registered Dietitian
I love all these foods, so why would I ever recommend that they not be eaten? The answer is that these foods interact with some medications.
When you take some medications, combining them with great foods such as these can be fatal. Food and drug interactions can be very serious.
I am heartened that with nutrition consulting, I help people delay or reverse the need for many medications that interact adversely with foods....and therefore enjoy all the foods they love.
While there will always be people who get ill despite clean living, more than half of major modern illnesses can be prevented or delayed with real changes to nutrition, exercise and lifestyle habits. This includes cancers, heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity and many more.
Below are some examples of some food and drug interactions. The number of possible interactions between food and drugs is infinite, so there will always be more findings to add to this list as more research is done.
| FOOD | DRUGS | COMMENTS |
| Grapefruit (contains the natural compound bergamottin) (Recent adverse reaction reports and animal studies identify that pomegranate and cranberry may have similar effects) |
Additional possible interactions
| Increases drug effect, can be toxic. For vulnerable people, less than 1 cup a day for 3 days taken prior to their medication increased drug levels an average of four times. Interferes with Cytochrome P450 Enzyme System in Liver which processes about 50% of drugs currently prescribed. It can take up to 4 days for the effects of grapefruit to wear off. |
| Dark Green Leafy Vegetables E.g. parsley, kale, collard greens, spinach, mustard greens, chard, beet greens, dandelion greens And double portions of Brussels sprouts, broccoli, rapini | Coumadin (warfarin) a blood thinner | Be consistent in the amount you consume every day. A sudden increase in intake can cancel out the drugs effect and be life-threatening These vegetables are extremely nutrient dense, so it is much better to eat a consistent amount each day than to avoid them. Have 1 serving of dark green vegetable every day and get your blood levels monitored regularly One serving is
OR
OR
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| Highest calcium foods including milk, yogurt,, calcium fortified juices, calcium set tofu | Antibiotics (Cipro and tetracycline) | Decreases the effect of the antibiotic when consumed with highest calcium foods |
| Chocolate, Beer, Wine Avocado, aged cheese and other tyramine-rich foods | Antidepressants that are MAO Inhibitors | Increase drug effect and can dangerously increase blood pressure |
| Beer | Anti-cancer drug tamoxafen | Increases drug effect |
| Black Tea Some Herbal Teas (St. John’s Wart, goldenseal, feverfew, cat’s claw) | Potentially all drugs metabolized in P450 liver enzyme system...which is about 50% of all drugs (see Grapefruit for examples) | Increases the effects of drugs by Interfering with P450 system in liver that metabolizes drugs & NHPs. As a general rule, do not take your medications with these teas. Consume black tea in moderation. Choose green and white teas more often. |
| Red wine and peanuts (containing resveratrol) | Coumadin (warfarin) a blood thinner (and potentially all the same medications as grapefruit, but more research is needed) | Supplemental amounts of resveratrol are more likely to cause problems than the amounts in food with a moderate intake Up to 2 glasses of wine and 2Tbsp of peanut butter per day are not expected to interact. |
| Black Pepper | Allergy Medication (Allegra--fexofenadine) | May increase drug effect |
| Natural licorice | Beta Blocker class of heart medications | May decrease drug effect |
If you take prescription medications, over-the-counter medications or natural health products (NHPs) it is important to know how the food you eat interacts with them. Ask your medical doctor, naturopathic doctor, pharmacist or Registered Dietitian. Even better, talk to all four.
If you want personalized consulting to ensure you are making the best food choices for you food preferences, health needs and lifestyle, I can help. Consider booking an appointment. Learn more at my website www.essencenutrition.ca.
