More than a million pensioners are at risk of worsening their chances of having a heart attack or stroke by taking herbal medicines in combination with statins or warfarin, researchers have warned.
New research has found that older people taking life-saving medications often take three or more herbal supplements, such as St. John’s wort and ginseng, which may reduce their effectiveness. .
The authors said people who regularly take herbal medicines (HMPs) should inform their doctor so they can explain the risks of potential interactions with mainstream medicines.
The study, published in the British Journal of General Practice, looked at patients who underwent two surgeries and found that a third of patients aged over 65 were taking both prescription drugs and herbal medicine. did.
A third of these are at risk of herb-drug interactions, and if you extrapolate this to the UK population, this means 1.3 million people are at risk.
Approximately 5 million people are thought to take statins daily to control cholesterol levels, and nearly 1 million take warfarin.
The study identified a number of combinations of drugs and herbal products that posed “significant risks”, as well as warning that the effectiveness of these drugs could be reduced.
These include mixing Bone Cal with the thyroid drug levothyroxine, peppermint with lansoprazole to regulate stomach acid, and St. John’s wort with amlodipine, which is used to treat high blood pressure.
