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Never Eat These Foods While On These Common Medications

Many medicinal medications have various effects, and these effects vary from individual to individual. Therefore, it becomes essential to take these medicines properly to ensure they are safe for you. Medicinal medications interact with the body in different ways. Your diet and lifestyle have a significant impact on these medications. Food and medicines are some of the interactions that people are not likely to be aware of. In this type of interaction, a specific nutrient or compound present in the food can change the way your body metabolizes a particular type of medication. This can result in deadly consequences. This article has mentioned some of the common medicines and food combinations you should avoid at all costs. 

Acetaminophen And Alcohol

Acetaminophen is a drug belonging to analgesic and antipyretics used to cure or relieve headaches, muscle pain, cold, sore throat, and sometimes menstrual pain. They are also widely used for pain caused by arthritis. One of the common names Acetaminophen is sold under is Tylenol. If you consume Tylenol, you might want to stop drinking alcohol over this medicine, which can affect your liver and cause severe liver damage. Regular drinker, and if you regularly consume Acetaminophen, you should rethink this food and drug combination. 

Antibiotics And Dairy Products

Drugs like Ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, or doxycycline are classified under the class of antibiotics. These medications are used to fight against infections caused by various bacteria in humans and animals. These medications kill the bacteria and stop their reproduction by destroying the bacteria’s DNA. Suppose you are someone who is under prescription for any of the antibiotics. In that case, One should avoid consuming food like milk, cheese, yogurt as these decrease the bioavailability of the medication. They make the absorption of these medications in the bloodstream very slow or interfere with the medicine. 

Statins And Grapefruit

For lowering blood pressure, doctors usually use Calcium channel blockers. These medications help lower blood pressure as they help prevent calcium ions from entering the heart cell, as calcium can cause muscular contraction of the heart and arteries. Statins are a type of drug that are again used to lower cholesterol levels in the blood. Especially the Low-density cholesterol. Grapefruit contains compounds like furanocoumarins which prevent the enzymes in your intestine from breaking down your medication completely. If the medicine is not entirely broken down, then higher concentrations of the medication are found in the body, which can cause potential toxic reactions. 

Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors And Dairy/ Cheese

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors are a class of antidepressant medications used to cure or treat depression. While under prescription for MAOI, the person is put under heavy diet restrictions as it can affect your blood pressure dangerously. One must avoid food containing higher levels of tyramine which helps in regulating blood pressure. These foods may include aged cheese, cured meat, soy sauce, and other fermented soy products. Hence it is your responsibility to consult your doctor as the doctor can provide you with a list of food that needs to be avoided. 

Ziprasidone And A Small Portion Of A Meal 

Ziprasidone belongs to the class of antipsychotic medications used to treat psychological disorders like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, which helps reduce hallucinations. A person consuming this medicine should at least eat more than 500 Kcal of calories as it is then only the medicine can be absorbed in the bloodstream. Hence eating a sufficient amount of food while consuming ziprasidone is very important. 

Hypothyroid Drugs And Food 

If you are getting your treatment for hypothyroidism, your thyroid glands become underactive, resulting in slow metabolism. During the treatment, you often are prescribed medications like Synthroid. These medications are often taken before consuming food, and the doctors always ask you to keep a buffer of thirty minutes to an hour. During this buffer, you are not supposed to eat many food items. Consuming food can block the absorption of the drug in the small intestine. And this may affect your thyroid glands too. 

Warfarin And Vitamin K Containing Food

Coumadin is a medication that is used to thin blood and helps in preventing blood clots. Eating food that is a rich source of vitamin K can reduce its effectiveness. One should avoid food like kale, spinach, and broccoli are the foods one should avoid while consuming warfarin or Coumadin. 

Insulin And Alcohol

If you are a person diagnosed or has diabetes, you must restrict your consumption of alcohol. Alcohol drops your blood sugar level. It can also cause hypoglycemia, also known as insulin shock, which can be a medical emergency. The liver stores glycogen, which, when consumed alcohol, is forcefully removed from your blood. Hence it is recommended that people with low blood sugar levels should stop consuming alcohol. Even if you are tempted to drink a pint of beer, making sure to have it with a full stomach slows alcohol absorption in the bloodstream. Consumption of alcohol on an empty stomach might be harmful. 

Potassium And ACEI 

Suppose you are someone who has been taken. In that case, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors are again given for people with high blood pressure issues as they help relax your veins and arteries. Consuming food like bananas or food with high potassium while taking these medicines can cause higher concentrations of potassium in your kidneys which would flush out your kidney. One should also avoid other foods like sweet potato, potatoes, and mushrooms. 

Digoxins And High Fiber Diet

Digoxins are given to strengthen the heart muscles’ contractions, slow down the heart rate, and help eliminate any fluid from the tissues. However, eating food containing high fiber can slow down the absorption of digoxin and reduce Its effectiveness. Therefore having a buffer time between consuming the medications is important. 

Metronidazole, SSRI And Alcohol

SSRI, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, is a type of antidepressant given to treat depression. Drinking alcohol on top of consuming these types of medications can make your problem even more severe, making you more depressed or anxious, you may even worsen your situation. When these two combine in your intestine, they can cause intestinal problems and lead to gastrointestinal bleeding. 

Another medication that should be avoided while consuming alcohol or alcohol consumption should be avoided while consuming this medication. Either way, one must avoid alcohol and Metronidazole, which are used to cure bacterial infections. When you consume alcohol, this might cause you severe vomiting. 


The above, as mentioned, are just a few types of food and medications combinations one should avoid. Even while the doctor is prescribing you medicine, it’s always suggested to ask the doctor for any particular essential food you should avoid, or you should include it in your diet. This will help you to prevent many unwanted diagnoses.