St. John's Wort And Echinacea Interfere With Some Drugs

[HuckleB]

St. John's Wort And Echinacea Interfere With Some Drugs By Moving Them Out Of The Body Too Fast
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=41015

"St. John's wort and Echinacea, two widely-used herbal preparations, have been found to increase activity of a specific enzyme in the liver and intestine, an enzyme involved in the metabolization of roughly one in every four pharmaceutical drugs on the market today, reports a clinical pharmacologist at Indiana University School of Medicine.

Metabolizing pharmaceuticals too slowly or too quickly can cause drug toxicity and/or loss of therapeutic function. Drugs known to be affected range from oral contraceptives to antihypertension medications to drugs to prevent rejection of transplanted organs.

Dr. J. Christopher Gorski described his research and its clinical significance on April 4 at Experimental Biology 2006 in San Francisco. Dr. Gorski was one of several experts speaking at a symposium on metabolic considerations in the action of herbal medicines, part of the scientific program of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.

The fact that St. John's wort causes many drugs to be metabolized too quickly was well established when Dr. Gorski began his research. He wanted to know how it happened. In order to prove that the process involved enzyme cytochrome P450 3A4, he worked with patients who had been taking the herbal preparation before they were given midazolam (Versed), a relaxant often given to patients before minor surgical procedures. Midazolam was chosen because it is one of the pharmaceuticals known to be metabolized by that particular enzyme. Laboratory analysis revealed the relaxant metabolized much more quickly in patients who had been using St. John's wort.

..."

[Deja Q]

1. True. I had to stop taking my herbs before surgery...

kava kava thins the blood. Would have made HUGE complications with the drugs they'd put me on.

Common sense, really.

[Warpy]

2. Tell your doc if you're taking any supplements

It's a great policy because there are so many interactions out there. If the only objection a doc has is "they don't work" and you think they do, then let your conscience be your guide. If he says there's an interatction, then dump the herb. Refined meds work a lot better than herbs do.

It's also a great idea to stop herbs about a week before planned surgery. Some of them can interfere with anesthesia, others with clotting.

Some herbs can interfere with birth control pills.

Let the doc know.

[Celebration]

3. Grapefruit Too!!

Grapefruit does the same thing-- the same mechanism perhaps? Maybe there should be a warning on some drugs.

[HuckleB]

4. The grapefruit warning is becoming fairly pervasive.

But, yes, there should be warnings on all drugs and herbs about possible interactions. Still, education must be done via other media, as most folks don't read a whole lot about what they ingest.