I nteractions between prescription or over-the-counter drugs and nutritional supplements are common and often not well known. In creating the Drug-Nutrient Workshop, a professional database of interactions between drugs and dietary supplements, nutrients, and food or food components, I found that over 400 drugs commonly used in the U.S. deplete specific nutrients and almost 500 drugs have their efficacy or side effects influenced by various foods. I also identified about a thousand adverse interactions between drugs and dietary supplements and several hundred beneficial interactions in which specific dietary supplements may enhance the efficacy or decrease the side effects of specific drugs.
People with Lyme and related diseases may receive prolonged therapy with antibiotics, sometimes combined with Prilosec or other proton-pump inhibitors (drugs that greatly reduce stomach acid) or Plaquenyl (an immune modulator) to alkalinize the intracellular vacuoles where the bacteria hide. Patients co-infected with Babesia may be prescribed anti-parasitic drugs as well. Some potential interactions (negative and positive) between these drugs and dietary supplements are described below. Information on drug/food interactions is usually available from the pharmacist and included in the patient-package insert. This should be checked for each individual drug being taken, because the dosage form (sustained release vs. regular, for example) may influence the effect of food on drug absorption. Patients with chronic tick-borne infections may also be taking antidepressants and pain relievers, each of which may have its own interaction with nutritional supplements and nutritional status…… Join or login below to continue reading.
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