I love grapefruit and grapefruit juice, but because of modern science, it's no longer part of my diet. It's interaction with many modern day drugs was discovered in Canada, by accident, in 1989. A team of researchers was studying the interaction between alcohol and a heart and blood pressure medication. They suspected that alcohol might modify the metabolism of this medicine. They ended up flavoring the alcohol with grapefruit juice. They discovered that blood levels for thoses that took the drug felodipine in grapefruit juice, was four times higher than when taken in water. This research was ignored at first, but through time and more studies, it was determined that something in grapefruit, Pomelos and Seville oranges block a liver enzyme from breaking down certain drugs. Without the enzyme, blood levels of these medications increase beyond the recommended dose and can lead to dangerous side effects.
There are so many good things to say about grapefruit, it's hard to imagine that they could be dangerous. Grapefruit is a powerhouse of nutrition: Vitamin A and C and potassium along with smaller amounts of B vitamins, calcium and other minerals. The pectin in a grapefruit lowers cholseterol and can help with weight loss. Antioxidants protect against cancer, heart disease and macular degeneration. For a diabetic grapefruit is a way to get a nutritious citrus fix that's low glycemic as well as healthy.
At the moment there are over 30 common drugs that have been identified as having the "grapefruit effect". I stopped eating grapefruit several years ago when my doctor put me on a statin drug to reduce my cholesterol. Some of the drugs that have the grapefruit warning on the label include calcium channel blockers, cholesterol lowering drugs (zocor and lipitor), sleeping pills and anti-anxiety drugs (valium, halcion), heart drugs, transplant drugs, estrogen, HIV/aids drugs, and epilepsy drugs. Several other common drugs are suspected of having the grapefruit effect, but the final results aren't in yet. Thse include viagra, flomax, claritin, singular, and allegra.
Unfortunately, you cannot drink grapefruit in the morning, then take your pills at night. The grapefruit interaction is long lasting. I just wonder, since my doctor recommended a statin to reduce my cholesterol, and grapefruit is a natural cholesterol reducing food, maybe I'd be better off eating a whole lot of grapefruit and skipping the pills. Just an idea.
There are so many good things to say about grapefruit, it's hard to imagine that they could be dangerous. Grapefruit is a powerhouse of nutrition: Vitamin A and C and potassium along with smaller amounts of B vitamins, calcium and other minerals. The pectin in a grapefruit lowers cholseterol and can help with weight loss. Antioxidants protect against cancer, heart disease and macular degeneration. For a diabetic grapefruit is a way to get a nutritious citrus fix that's low glycemic as well as healthy.
At the moment there are over 30 common drugs that have been identified as having the "grapefruit effect". I stopped eating grapefruit several years ago when my doctor put me on a statin drug to reduce my cholesterol. Some of the drugs that have the grapefruit warning on the label include calcium channel blockers, cholesterol lowering drugs (zocor and lipitor), sleeping pills and anti-anxiety drugs (valium, halcion), heart drugs, transplant drugs, estrogen, HIV/aids drugs, and epilepsy drugs. Several other common drugs are suspected of having the grapefruit effect, but the final results aren't in yet. Thse include viagra, flomax, claritin, singular, and allegra.
Unfortunately, you cannot drink grapefruit in the morning, then take your pills at night. The grapefruit interaction is long lasting. I just wonder, since my doctor recommended a statin to reduce my cholesterol, and grapefruit is a natural cholesterol reducing food, maybe I'd be better off eating a whole lot of grapefruit and skipping the pills. Just an idea.
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