How Grapefruit and grapefruit juice Affects Your Medications
Avoid grapefruit and grapefruit juice with affected medications, or ask your pharmacist which specific statin/blood-pressure options are not affected. The effect can last a day or more, so separating by a few hours does not reliably avoid it.
This interaction is generally considered major in severity.
How It Happens
Grapefruit inhibits the intestinal CYP3A4 enzyme, reducing the breakdown of many oral medications. This can raise blood levels of the drug, increasing the risk of side effects (for example, muscle injury with certain statins or excessive blood-pressure lowering with some calcium channel blockers).
What to Do
Avoid grapefruit and grapefruit juice with affected medications, or ask your pharmacist which specific statin/blood-pressure options are not affected. The effect can last a day or more, so separating by a few hours does not reliably avoid it.
Medication Classes Affected
Specific Medications to Watch
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor (statin)
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor (statin)
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor (statin)
Calcium channel blocker
Calcium channel blocker
PDE5 inhibitor
PDE5 inhibitor
Azapirone anxiolytic
Calcineurin inhibitor immunosuppressant
Calcineurin inhibitor immunosuppressant
Class III antiarrhythmic
This information is educational — not medical advice.
This page is provided for general educational purposes and summarizes publicly available data from sources such as the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. It is not a substitute for the judgment of a licensed clinician and should not be used to start, stop, or change any medication. It may be incomplete or out of date, and individual circumstances vary. Always talk with your prescriber or pharmacist about your specific medications and health conditions. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call 911.