Did you know that it was not recommended to drink grapefruit juice when taking certain medications? No, it's not a joke. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends not drinking grapefruit juice when taking certain medications. While grapefruit juice is normally harmless, it is different during medical treatment because grapefruit can change the way the medication will work in the body. Once absorbed, cannabidiol (CBD) is metabolized in the liver. It may inhibit the enzymatic activity of the breakdown of various drugs. These enzymes include CYP2C19, CYP2D6 and CYP3A4.
What happens then?
Drugs that are degraded by the CYP2C19 enzyme may be degraded more slowly and have a greater effect. (JIANG et al. 2013) CBD inhibits the activity of the CYP2D6 enzyme, so drugs that require this enzyme will be degraded less rapidly and have a greater effect. And for CYP3A4, some drugs may slow down the degradation of CBD in the liver.
Other undesirable effects have been reported, such as drowsiness, digestive disorders or an increase in liver enzymes at high doses. CBD is not recommended during pregnancy and breastfeeding. If you are on medical treatment, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before using any CBD product, and never stop or change your treatment without their advice.
