Do GLP1 peptides interact with meds?

RanHerOver

RanHerOver

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Hi!

My girlfriend has been thinking about trying Retatrutide, since she saw what kind of results I got.

That part is fine, but there is one issue: every day she takes 100mg of zoloft, 5mg of aripiprazole, and oral birth control.

From what I have been able to find, the only possible issue seems to be that a slower digestive system could mean her meds take longer to be absorbed.

Naturally, she is going to discuss it with her doctor. Still, while that is pending, I was hoping to hear whether anyone here has firsthand experience with any of this.

Thanks!
 
It might not be a medication, but I learned that Berberine should not be combined with it. I'm bringing this up because a number of us — myself included — take that supplement to help bring blood sugar down. Once I began Reta, I stopped taking Berberine.
 
ultima thule said:

It might not be a medication, but I learned that Berberine should not be combined with it. I'm bringing this up because a number of us — myself included — take that supplement to help bring blood sugar down. Once I began Reta, I stopped taking Berberine.
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She isn't taking berbarine, but thanks for letting me know!
 
Because gastric emptying slows down when using glp-1s, oral contraceptives are certainly among the medications that may be impacted.


https://www.drtahery.com/glp-1-medications-and-birth-control-pills-how-do-they-interact


Regarding zoloft and aripiprazole in particular, I haven't come across any reports of problems, though this Women's Health site link lists several other interactions to steer clear of when taking Rx drugs, herbal products, and so on.



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How To Avoid Medication Interaction Problems When Dieting With Ozempic - Women's Health Practice



Potent drugs such as Ozempic belong to the GLP-1 class, and they could potentially interact with the medications you take.

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www.womenshealthpractice.com
 
Because of this, my wife made the change to the birth control patch. It's pricier than the pill, but it beats ending up pregnant. Since the patch delivers straight into your system, GLP1 won't have an effect on it.
 
I'm on several medications for bipolar, and I've never run into any problems. Still, I'd look into the oral birth control specifically—that's the one thing I haven't tried, so it might be a concern.
 
My GP told me it would make it less effective, and advised me to add a second form of birth control as a precaution.
 
RanHerOver said:

Hi!

My girlfriend has been thinking about trying Retatrutide, since she saw what kind of results I got.

That part is fine, but there is one issue: every day she takes 100mg of zoloft, 5mg of aripiprazole, and oral birth control.

From what I have been able to find, the only possible issue seems to be that a slower digestive system could mean her meds take longer to be absorbed.

Naturally, she is going to discuss it with her doctor. Still, while that is pending, I was hoping to hear whether anyone here has firsthand experience with any of this.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Like others have pointed out, when gastric emptying slows down, that will without question alter how virtually every drug taken by mouth gets processed by the body.

Whether that becomes a real problem hinges on how tightly the absorption window matters for the particular drug in question. Certain drugs are far less forgiving about timing - painkillers, nausea medications, diabetes pills taken orally, treatments for Parkinson's, and so on.

Honestly, pinning down answers for individual drugs is tough, and absent additional studies, my guess is the best we can do is rely on each person's own sense of whether their meds seem stronger or weaker once their GLP1 dose has levelled out.

On a loosely connected note, I'd really stress this: any time you could end up needing anaesthesia - whether it's a scheduled operation or something urgent - for heaven's sake, do not keep your GLP use a secret from your physicians.
 
RanHerOver said:

Hi!

My girlfriend has been thinking about trying Retatrutide, since she saw what kind of results I got.

That part is fine, but there is one issue: every day she takes 100mg of zoloft, 5mg of aripiprazole, and oral birth control.

From what I have been able to find, the only possible issue seems to be that a slower digestive system could mean her meds take longer to be absorbed.

Naturally, she is going to discuss it with her doctor. Still, while that is pending, I was hoping to hear whether anyone here has firsthand experience with any of this.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Yes, I do. No issues have come up for me. Each morning I take a birth control pill along with 50mg of zoloft.
 
ultima thule said:

It might not be a medication, but I learned that Berberine should not be combined with it. I'm bringing this up because a number of us — myself included — take that supplement to help bring blood sugar down. Once I began Reta, I stopped taking Berberine.
Click to expand...
Thanks for sharing that. I had no idea, and I've got berberine on hand in case it's needed. I'll just leave it as a backup for now.
 
Devilseye said:

I'm on several medications for bipolar, and I've never run into any problems. Still, I'd look into the oral birth control specifically—that's the one thing I haven't tried, so it might be a concern.
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Prozac here too, same situation.
 
i use Synthroid plus beta blockers, and i'm managing this alongside my PCP. getting the balance right was a process—especially after going on tirz, pausing it, and then restarting. what i was told: no food for 6 hours beforehand (usually it's 4 hours), which means taking it right when i wake up, though that's what i already do. also, nothing at all to eat or drink—not even my morning energy drink—for a minimum of 1 full hour afterward (the usual wait is 30 minutes). even after that, she said not to have a huge breakfast.. though with the tirz, that wasn't happening anyway lol. so it's just the energy drink until lunch.

everyone may respond differently, and it depends on her dose, whether she's going to raise it, and how long she's been at the current dose. honestly, it's worth coordinating directly with her PCP and moving slowly so her prescription drugs don't accidentally swing a lot in effectiveness. i know it was kind of a hassle for me with my Synthroid.
 
Lear00 said:

RanHerOver said:

Hi!

My girlfriend has been thinking about trying Retatrutide, since she saw what kind of results I got.

That part is fine, but there is one issue: every day she takes 100mg of zoloft, 5mg of aripiprazole, and oral birth control.

From what I have been able to find, the only possible issue seems to be that a slower digestive system could mean her meds take longer to be absorbed.

Naturally, she is going to discuss it with her doctor. Still, while that is pending, I was hoping to hear whether anyone here has firsthand experience with any of this.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Like others have pointed out, when gastric emptying slows down, that will without question alter how virtually every drug taken by mouth gets processed by the body.

Whether that becomes a real problem hinges on how tightly the absorption window matters for the particular drug in question. Certain drugs are far less forgiving about timing - painkillers, nausea medications, diabetes pills taken orally, treatments for Parkinson's, and so on.

Honestly, pinning down answers for individual drugs is tough, and absent additional studies, my guess is the best we can do is rely on each person's own sense of whether their meds seem stronger or weaker once their GLP1 dose has levelled out.

On a loosely connected note, I'd really stress this: any time you could end up needing anaesthesia - whether it's a scheduled operation or something urgent - for heaven's sake, do not keep your GLP use a secret from your physicians.
Click to expand...
Right, I assumed the answer hinged on whether the medication's schedule is strict. Fortunately, her birth control has a 12 hours window in which it still works. Currently she takes it at 3pm. As long as she sticks with that time, any slower absorption should not put her at risk.

We'll update you all 🙂 thanks
 
ultima thule said:

It might not be a medication, but I learned that Berberine should not be combined with it. I'm bringing this up because a number of us — myself included — take that supplement to help bring blood sugar down. Once I began Reta, I stopped taking Berberine.
Click to expand...
If you're able to pass along the source, I'd really like to dig into this further.

Berberine shows up in an OEA supplement I've been adding, and it's been useful for me in the last stretch of the week, right before the next dose.

Nothing has gone wrong for me so far, but I'd definitely like to find out whether there's some danger here that I'm unaware of.

Ciao
 
Sid the SeaGull said:

ultima thule said:

It might not be a medication, but I learned that Berberine should not be combined with it. I'm bringing this up because a number of us — myself included — take that supplement to help bring blood sugar down. Once I began Reta, I stopped taking Berberine.
Click to expand...
If you're able to pass along the source, I'd really like to dig into this further.

Berberine shows up in an OEA supplement I've been adding, and it's been useful for me in the last stretch of the week, right before the next dose.

Nothing has gone wrong for me so far, but I'd definitely like to find out whether there's some danger here that I'm unaware of.

Ciao
Click to expand...
Honestly, you can find plenty of information on this across the internet. I'm not a complicated person, so when I was about to begin Reta, I kept it simple and did a Google search along the lines of "what not to mix up with Glp-1". Berberine came up in a lot of those articles. The key point is that this herbal supplement can lower blood sugar, which means it carries the potential to raise the risk of hypoglycaemia. That might not be a huge deal, but in my opinion it's worth being cautious about. If you'd rather dig into this in a more detailed manner, the only thing I can recommend is going about it the same way I did.
 
ultima thule said:

Sid the SeaGull said:

ultima thule said:

It might not be a medication, but I learned that Berberine should not be combined with it. I'm bringing this up because a number of us — myself included — take that supplement to help bring blood sugar down. Once I began Reta, I stopped taking Berberine.
Click to expand...
If you're able to pass along the source, I'd really like to dig into this further.

Berberine shows up in an OEA supplement I've been adding, and it's been useful for me in the last stretch of the week, right before the next dose.

Nothing has gone wrong for me so far, but I'd definitely like to find out whether there's some danger here that I'm unaware of.

Ciao
Click to expand...
Honestly, you can find plenty of information on this across the internet. I'm not a complicated person, so when I was about to begin Reta, I kept it simple and did a Google search along the lines of "what not to mix up with Glp-1". Berberine came up in a lot of those articles. The key point is that this herbal supplement can lower blood sugar, which means it carries the potential to raise the risk of hypoglycaemia. That might not be a huge deal, but in my opinion it's worth being cautious about. If you'd rather dig into this in a more detailed manner, the only thing I can recommend is going about it the same way I did.
Click to expand...
Thanks — I suppose I'm testing the limits, aiming for ketosis, though without care that could lead to hypoglycaemic.

Holding off during the last days before the next pin lowers the risk. In my case, the OEA combined with the Berberine eases late-week food noise. I've also relied on it while travelling, during stretches of a few weeks when I couldn't take my pen along.

Your insights are genuinely appreciated, thank you.
 
A lot of drugs have their absorption changed by it, and the combined oral contraceptive pill can end up working less well, so looking into this yourself or asking a doctor would probably be wise.

For the dexamphetamine I take for ADHD/adjuvant antidepressant, it lowers the effect, which I found somewhat irritating, and it also slows down how quickly painkillers/tramadol get absorbed, so each morning my gut aches for a few additional hours before they kick in, and taking them at night is not an option because they keep me awake.

This is the first occasion I have come across anyone bringing up OEA, one of the handful of supplements backed by clinical trial evidence for weight loss, even if it is only 1-2kg and every study comes out of Iran.
 
lessthanhalf said:

A lot of drugs have their absorption changed by it, and the combined oral contraceptive pill can end up working less well, so looking into this yourself or asking a doctor would probably be wise.

For the dexamphetamine I take for ADHD/adjuvant antidepressant, it lowers the effect, which I found somewhat irritating, and it also slows down how quickly painkillers/tramadol get absorbed, so each morning my gut aches for a few additional hours before they kick in, and taking them at night is not an option because they keep me awake.

This is the first occasion I have come across anyone bringing up OEA, one of the handful of supplements backed by clinical trial evidence for weight loss, even if it is only 1-2kg and every study comes out of Iran.
Click to expand...
When I use OEA, I pair it with 1 tablespoon of 92% oleic acid (safflower oil). Based on what I found, that seemed like the most effective method for getting OEA absorbed. I suppose that counts as my own personal research, which is what this community is all about. It does the job for me during the final days of the week prior to pinning.
 
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