Grapefruit juice and fresh grapefruit can interact with some prescription and nonprescription drugs which can lead to adverse events. For example, if you drink a lot of grapefruit juice while taking certain statin drugs to lower cholesterol, higher concentrations of the drug may stay in your body, increasing the risk of liver damage and muscle breakdown that can lead to kidney failure.
Not all drugs are affected. Examples of some types of drugs that grapefruit juice can interact with are:
- some statin drugs to lower cholesterol, such as Zocor (simvastatin), Lipitor (atorvastatin) and Pravachol (pravastatin)
- some high blood pressure medications, such as Nifediac or Afeditab (nifedipine)
- some organ transplant drugs, such as Sandimmune or Neoral (cyclosporine)
- some anti-anxiety drugs, such as Buspar (buspirone)
- some heart anti-arrhythmia drugs, such as Cordarone or Nexterone (amiodarone)
- some antihistamines, such as Allegra (fexofenadine)
It is best to avoid or limit consuming grapefruit juice or fresh grapefruit when taking certain medications. Ask your pharmacist, read the drug label or read the drug information sheet to find out if your specific drug interacts with grapefruit juice. If you must avoid grapefruit juice with your medicine, check the ingredients label of other fruit juices and drinks to make sure they don’t contain grapefruit. Also, tangelos, a cross between tangerines and grapefruit, should be avoided. (from American Dental Association News June 2012)