Which Statins Are Safe With Grapefruit?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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In reality, it’s only related to the 3 statins we mentioned above. So, it’s safe to continue enjoying your grapefruit with

pravastatin (Pravachol)

, rosuvastatin (Crestor), fluvastatin (Lescol), and pitavastatin (Livalo).

What happens if you drink grapefruit juice while taking statins?

For example, if you drink a lot of grapefruit juice while taking certain statin drugs to lower cholesterol, too much of the drug may stay in your body,

increasing your risk for liver and muscle damage that can lead to kidney failure

.

Can you drink grapefruit juice with statins?

Statins are medicines that lower your cholesterol. Grapefruit or grapefruit juice affects some statins.

Do not drink grapefruit juice if you’re taking simvastatin

. Grapefruit juice increases the level of simvastatin in your blood and makes side effects more likely.

Which fruit juice should be avoided while on treatment with statins?


Grapefruit juice

is the only food or drink that has a direct interaction with statins.

Can you drink orange juice with statins?


Sweet orange

(citrus sinensis) may inhibit OATP, which helps mediate hepatic uptake and facilitates statin metabolism. Tangerines are related to sweet orange and may also inhibit OATP. Patients should either avoid these juices altogether or limit consumption to 60 mL per serving.

Do statins make you age faster?

So, while these findings are interesting and potentially important, there’s quite a large leap from these studies of minced fat cells to the conclusion that being treated with

statins will lead a person to age prematurely

.

Why you should never take statins?

Very rarely, statins

can cause life-threatening muscle damage

called rhabdomyolysis (rab-doe-my-OL-ih-sis). Rhabdomyolysis can cause severe muscle pain, liver damage, kidney failure and death. The risk of very serious side effects is extremely low, and calculated in a few cases per million people taking statins.

Can you eat oranges on statins?

Limit your consumption of grapefruit or switch to “

safe

” citrus fruits, such as blood oranges, clementines, lemons, limes, mandarins, navel oranges, and tangerines. Bitter oranges, pomelos, tangelos, and Seville oranges contain high levels of furanocoumarin and should also be avoided.

What vitamins should not be taken with statins?

A

magnesium- and aluminum-containing

antacid was reported to interfere with atorvastatin absorption. People can avoid this interaction by taking atorvastatin two hours before or after any aluminum/magnesium-containing antacids. Some magnesium supplements such as magnesium hydroxide are also antacids.

What foods should I avoid while taking atorvastatin?

A: While taking atorvastatin (Lipitor), avoid high-fat and high-cholesterol foods as part of your overall treatment. You should avoid

large quantities of grapefruit or grapefruit juice

, which can increase the risk of serious side effects. Also, avoid excess alcohol use, as this may cause serious liver problems.

Does orange juice affect atorvastatin?


Orange juice is safe to drink with Atorvastatin

. Contact your prescriber immediately if you experience unexplained muscle aches, muscle pain or tenderness, general weakness or fatigue, side or back pain, or decreased urination while taking Atorvastatin.

How much will 10 mg of atorvastatin lower cholesterol?

Doses of 20 mg/d lovastatin or pravastatin or 10 mg/d simvastatin generally reduce plasma LDL cholesterol levels

by about 20% to 30%

. Higher doses of these drugs can reduce LDL cholesterol levels by as much as 40%.

What drugs does orange juice interact with?

  • The allergy drug Allegra, available generically as fexofenadine.
  • The antibiotics ciprofloxacin (Cipro, Proquin), levofloxacin (Levaquin), and itraconazole (Sporanox)
  • The beta-blocker blood pressure drugs atenolol (Tenormin), celiprolol, and talinolol.

Do statins clear the arteries of plaque?

Statins help lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, also known as “bad” cholesterol, in the blood.

They draw cholesterol out of plaque and stabilize plaque

, Blaha says.

At what age should you stop statins?

Dr. Guy L. Mintz, director of cardiovascular health and lipidology at Northwell Health’s Sandra Atlas Bass Heart Hospital in Manhasset, New York, says the study reinforces that older adults shouldn’t stop taking their statin just because they reach the

“magic age” of 75

.

Can I drink alcohol with statins?

Overall,

there are no specific health risks associated with drinking

while using statins. In other words, alcohol won’t immediately interfere with or react with the statins in your body.

Rebecca Patel
Author
Rebecca Patel
Rebecca is a beauty and style expert with over 10 years of experience in the industry. She is a licensed esthetician and has worked with top brands in the beauty industry. Rebecca is passionate about helping people feel confident and beautiful in their own skin, and she uses her expertise to create informative and helpful content that educates readers on the latest trends and techniques in the beauty world.