What medications are incompatible with honey?
Jan 20, 2025
Source: Cainiu Health
Dr. Yang Ziqi
Introduction
Under normal circumstances, honey may interact with certain medications such as antibiotics, anticoagulants, antihypertensive drugs, sedatives or hypnotics, and hypoglycemic agents. Taking honey together with these medications may cause adverse reactions or be harmful to the body. To ensure the effectiveness of the medication and protect your health, honey should be avoided during the use of the above medications.
Generally, honey may interact with certain medications such as antibiotics, anticoagulants, antihypertensive drugs, sedative-hypnotics, and hypoglycemic agents, potentially causing adverse reactions or unfavorable effects when taken together. Detailed explanations are as follows:
1. Antibiotics: Such as amoxicillin capsules and levofloxacin tablets. Certain components in honey may affect the absorption of antibiotics in the gastrointestinal tract, thereby reducing their antibacterial effectiveness. Therefore, honey should be avoided during antibiotic treatment.
2. Anticoagulants: Such as warfarin sodium tablets and dicoumarol tablets. Some active components in honey may increase the risk of bleeding; when taken together with anticoagulant drugs, this may exacerbate the tendency to bleed, which is detrimental to recovery.
3. Antihypertensive drugs: Such as nifedipine tablets and captopril tablets. Honey contains large amounts of sugars such as glucose and fructose, which may interfere with the absorption and metabolism of antihypertensive medications, leading to unstable blood pressure control.
4. Sedative-hypnotic drugs: Such as diazepam tablets and estazolam tablets. Certain components in honey may interact with sedative-hypnotic medications, affecting their efficacy and potentially causing adverse reactions.
5. Hypoglycemic drugs: Such as metformin hydrochloride tablets and glibenclamide tablets. The sugar content in honey may interfere with the normal action of hypoglycemic medications, causing fluctuations in blood glucose levels, which is detrimental to blood sugar control in diabetic patients.
To ensure the effectiveness of medications and maintain good health, honey should be avoided during treatment with the above medications. If you have any questions or experience discomfort, please consult a qualified physician or pharmacist promptly.
