What effect does grapefruit have on Lipitor?
Many medications cause dangerous interactions with other drugs when taken together, but, in some cases, things you eat and drink may also pose a threat. An example of this is the combination of grapefruit juice and the prescription cholesterol medication Lipitor or atorvastatin calcium.BackgroundYour liver is responsible for filtering Lipitor from your bloodstream for elimination from your body, and the organ completes this task with an enzyme known as cytochrome P450 3A4. Grapefruit juice inhibits the actions of cytochrome P450 3A4 and, therefore, can cause levels of Lipitor in your body to build up.Clinical EvidenceA 2005 study at the Jichi Medical School in Tochigi, Japan, and published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology found patients who drank grapefruit juice each day for four days and then took 20 mg of atorvastatin calcium experienced higher levels of the drug in their bloodstreams than those who drank water.FeaturesThe risk of interactions between grapefruit juice
