Common drugs prompt dangerous interactions when taken with common beverages

The grapefruit connection isn’t news.

As I’ve told you before, a chemical in grapefruit juice creates problems with some drugs. The chemical boosts absorption. That can prompt serious problems.

As a pharmacologist told CBS News, taking a single pill with grapefruit juice is like taking 20 pills with water.

Statins and blood pressure drugs are among the most common drugs that interact with grapefruit juice. But a new report from Canada warns that the number of drugs on the list has expanded from 17 to 43 in just four years.

No doubt, that’s a concern. But it was a side note in the CBS report that really jumped out…

A drug expert told the BBC that people need to be more aware of bad interactions between foods and drugs. “For example, milk can stop the absorption of some antibiotics if taken simultaneously.”

Well THAT seems like kind of a big deal!

And yet, the report just mentions it in passing. As if milk and antibiotics were so rare they would hardly ever be combined.

I checked the BBC website. Same thing. Just a passing mention. But a little more digging produced a shock.

Tetracycline is the antibiotic. It also happens to be one of the most widely used antibiotics in the world!

Imagine how many people on tetracycline pop their morning pill and then dig into a bowl of cereal.

So the next time a pharmacist asks if you have any questions about a prescription…

Sources:
“Drinking grapefruit juice with some medications can be deadly, study warns” Michelle Castillo, CBS News, 11/27/12, cbsnews.com