Quote:
Originally Posted by 2annabelle
Don't drink grapefruit juice or eat grapefruit if you're taking statin medication (like lipitor) for high cholesteral...it renders the meds useless!
Actually the opposite is true. Grapefruit juice increasese the amount of medication that is absorbed, and in large enough amounts (of the grapefruit that is) can cause a toxic "overdose" reaction.
Small amounts though aren't generally considered harmful (ask your doctor though as your health issues and the dose and type of drug you're on can affect how much grapefruit is safe).
When I was prescribed a statin, my med had a warning label that said "do not decrease or increase the amount of grapefruit in your diet before consulting with your doctor," so I of course asked my doctor what that meant.
Apparently some doctors will (or used to) actually prescribe a much smaller dose of the medication and then advise their patients to take the med with grapefruit juice.
I asked my doctor what was safe for me, and he said that since I take my statin at night, I could have a grapefruit or a small glass of grapefruit juice for breakfast or lunch every day if I wanted. To be safe though, I'll have grapefruit (but never juice, but that's just a personal preference) at most a couple times a week.
That doesn't mean it's safe for everyone though, so if you're on any meds that interact with grapefruit (you can find lists online) make sure you ask your doctor for specific instructions.