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Grapefruit juice is a healthy drink that contains a large amount of vitamins and minerals. However, if mixed with the wrong medication, the fruit can be potentially fatal.
An increasing amount of research has shown that grapefruit contains high concentrations of so-called furancoumarins, which can reduce or, on the contrary, enhance the absorption of certain drugs. This leads to a dangerously low – or, as is more often the case, a dangerously high – level of medication in the human body.
"Grapefruit juice promotes the penetration of more drugs into the blood. When the content of the drug in the blood is too high, you may experience side effects," said pharmacologist Shiu Mei Huang from the Food and Drug Administration.
Here's how it works
Your body produces an enzyme called cytochrome P450 3A4 (or CYP3A4), mainly in the liver and small intestine. This enzyme helps the body break down and remove small foreign molecules such as toxins or medications. It plays a crucial role in the metabolism of many drugs.
However, one glass of grapefruit juice reduces the production of the CYP3A4 enzyme, which in turn prevents the body from metabolizing certain oral medications. More of the drug enters the bloodstream and it stays in the body longer, causing an overdose effect, even if you have taken the correct dosage. And the list of medications is quite extensive, from cholesterol and blood pressure medications to cancer drugs and antidepressants.
The consequences can be quite dramatic. Rapid heart rate, muscle breakdown, bone marrow toxicity, shortness of breath, gastrointestinal bleeding, and kidney failure are all complications of some medications that are affected by furancoumarins. And in extreme cases, these interactions can be fatal.
If you are taking certain medications, you do not have to exclude grapefruit juice or the fruit itself from your diet, as if you are a vampire and grapefruit is holy water. But it is worth consulting with a doctor about potentially possible side effects.
And you can just drink the medicine with water.
