Quote:
Originally Posted by StainlessSteelCynic
Here's something to think about and you definitely want a chemist to sort it out...
Medicinal drugs are actually stronger than you need but they are made that way because humans produce an enzyme that filters/blocks out various things in concert with the liver to ensure we don't poison ourselves. That is to say, it will reduce the potency of the medication.
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I looked into this a while back when my father was on medication that grapefruit would interfere with, and it's really weird if one digs into it.
There are actually two ways grapefruit juice can interfere with medicines. It blocks enzymes like you mentioned. That's how it messes with statins and increases the amount in the body. It can also block transporters and
reduce the amount of some medications, like Allegra. Acetaminophen has a weird reaction where one glass of grapefruit juice will increase absorption and make the drug more effective because of the enzyme reaction, but subsequent glasses will reduce bioavailability and make the drug less effective.
The gang would need to know how furanocoumarins interact with each drug to know how grapefruit juice will affect dosing (which can also vary a bit by individual, so there's going to be some risk no matter what).
The interaction can also occur with any other citrus fruit descended from the pomelo, such as limes (other than Key lime) or bitter oranges. Sweet oranges are technically a pomelo descendant, but they're primarily mandarin and have very little of the furanocoumarins that destroy the enzymes.