Grapefruit & Augmentin

Whenever you start a new medication, whether it is temporary or permanent, you should always talk to your doctor or pharmacist about foods that may interact with it. Eating certain foods can increase or decrease a medication's effectiveness, or increase side effects. Grapefruit and its juice interact with a number of medications; however, Augmentin is not one of those medications 1.

Augmentin

Augmentin is a type of penicillin antibiotic 1. It consists of a combination of amoxicillin and clavulanate potassium. Both components are antibiotics that fight infection. However, clavulanate potassium fights bacteria that are resistant to penicillin. Augmentin is prescribed to treat a number of bacterial infections, including pneumonia, sinusitis, ear infections, bronchitis, urinary tract infections and skin infections 1. You should not take Augmentin if you are allergic to penicillin or clavulanate potassium 1. You should also talk to your doctor before taking Augmentin if you have a history of liver disease 1.

Grapefruit

Can I Take Benicar & Eat Grapefruit?

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Grapefruit is a healthy food, rich in vitamin C, potassium and fiber, and has even earned the American Heart Association's "heart check" mark. However, a substance in grapefruit juice binds with the enzyme in your gut that helps prevent the absorption of certain medications. By blocking this enzyme, the grapefruit juice allows more of the medication to enter your bloodstream, causing higher than normal blood levels of the medication, which can be dangerous. Grapefruit interacts with high blood pressure medications, cholesterol-lowering medications and psychiatric medications. However, it does not interact with any antibiotics or Augmentin 1. While it does not appear that grapefruit or its juice interacts with Augmentin, you should talk to your doctor about whether it is safe to drink grapefruit juice while taking the antibiotic 1.

Food and Augmentin Interactions

When it comes to diet and Augmentin, it is recommended that you take it with a full glass of water before a meal to prevent stomach upset 1. No specific foods are noted to interact with the medication, according to Drugs.com 1. However, when taking any antibiotics it is recommended that you avoid foods high in acid, such as tomato sauce or vinegars, at the time you take your medication because they can decrease your body's ability to absorb the medication. You should also avoid alcohol when taking antibiotics to lessen the severity of side effects.

Considerations

Interactions of Cranberry Juice & Amoxicillin

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Antibiotics kill not only the bad bacteria that makes you sick, but also the good bacteria that helps to keep you healthy. To restore the balance of good bacteria to your body when taking Augmentin, you should include probiotics on your diet plan 1. Probiotics are foods that contain the friendly bacteria, and include yogurt, sauerkraut and kim chee.