http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=0018jOZxInW1OJeSn8a6nYeGKxGZ2uJ7aKMq8jNUwyWvr4WAKJfE4sLmoqRER4jfDQk6lqS3xJZCbzezTI7_A8O6Gr0_QVRsThM5v-E1IZj0QAMTJlr9hOkwmCEB0JcS6rPqgLriMaKFjplN23PS9qaxLTKsnrQu8LtY1zFrZqi3BZSlpqK2BwcQHOho1R9CmgfC9AB6l3pShumY-MsndIl7Q==

I was talking to a guy that works for UGA about this today. He said that his mother was looking forward to this being released because of the grapefruit effect with her medication. I had not heard about this until then and I told him that I would look into it. Thanks for sharing.

There many types of medications for cholesterol. Have your doctor change your medication to Pravstatin. I take Pravastatin for cholesterol which Grapefruit does not bother. I can eat all the grapefruit I wish. - Millet

Apparently there are other non cholesterol drugs that they are finding out now to have serious side effects when used with grapefuit.

This could be a money maker for the growers that are above the citrus belt with the grapefruits cold tolerance. Part of the hybridization was to create a grapefruit that is less bitter and sweeter. HMMM sounds like a giant orange The drug intereaction was a side benefit. Good news all around!

The downside, there's always a downside, is that given a grapefruit having a node count just shy of the national deficit will mean it will take a while before this ever hits the markets. Probably twelve years minimum!

There is a warning on some allergy medicines about taking with fruit juices such as grapefruit. According to the manufacturer of one, it will make the medicine less effective.

UCR used to have a link to a report from a study of which drugs were affected by grapefruit consumption. The last I looked, I was no longer able to find it. Millet, I may look into Pravstatin the next time I see my doctor. I've been selling my Oroblanco to the nearby fruitstand.

http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/update0206d.shtml

The Harvard site above has a list of medications affected by grapefruit plus a list of alternatives not affected.

What I can't find out is whether pummelos and tangelos also interact with these medications.

I don't recall where I found some report from Florida, I believe, where they found that the vast majority of tangelos had no drug interaction. This is something I read maybe a couple of years ago.

Thank you for starting this thread. My father both loves grapefruit and is on Lipitor. Here is the direct link to the Reuters' article as Yahoo! News will drop its link after a couple of weeks.

I believe the substance in grapefruit works by increasing the absorption therefor making overdosing possible. Since my father hates the side effects of Lipitor he wondered if he could cut the dosage by eating grapefruit. Smart man...though the doctor didn't think so.

Your father should ask his doctor if he can change to pravastatin. Grapefruit does not interact with the colestrol reducing medicine pravastatin . - Millet

Millet's recommendation is a good one. One I think I actually recommended this to Millet a while back (being a nurse) Pravastatin is one of four statins that do not appear to have an interaction with bergamottin, the chemical found in grapefruits, pummelos, Bergamot sour orange, and some tangelos that can cause certain enzymes responsible for breaking down certain statins (such as atorvastatin which is Lipitor) to be blocked, thus causing abnormally high and dangerous levels of these statins to build up. Here are the four statins that do not seem to have this interaction:

rosuvastatin (Crestor®)
pravastatin (Pravachol ®)
fluvastatin (Lescol ®)
pitavastatin (Livalo ®)

The two we see prescribed here in the USA are Crestor and Pravachol. Yes, pummelos also contain bergamottin, as does the Bergamot sour orange, and to a very small degree, certain tangelos, but the levels are low enough that if you put some time between taking your statin and eating a tangelo, your blood levels of your statin should not be adversely affected. This affect doesn't take much grapefruit or pummelo - just one serving can cause seriously elevated levels of your statin. So, see if your healthcare provider will allow you to switch statins to one of the above statins, so you can enjoy grapefruits & pummelos. Or, we can try to procur this new grapefruit hybrid, too! As always, be sure to check with your healthcare provider before you make any decisions (my little caveat and disclaimer).

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10460065

I looked at my wife's medication which her MD had switched her to a couple of years ago and I saw it's Pravastatin. His switch was made because of something that made him believe it is more effective than the Semvastatin which she had been on and I am currently still taking....for a few more days. Called my doctor today and my new prescription got sent in today.

I have an Oroblanco with about 50 fruits on it still calling me..... I've been giving those away, selling some, but wishing I could enjoy them myself.

I'm not sure what my wife's doctor saw to encourage the switch, but these old studies show Pravastatin as being less effective: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8456759
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14697462

I'm willing to give it a try and will follow-up with my doctor later. If you have any other information, please share it. I did read some indication that Semvastatin may be more likely to cause leg pains and that is something that I happened to have noticed more and more lately without really thinking much about the possible correlation (I had unexplained nerve damage affecting my left leg some years ago and thought it might be that again).

Well, I'm glad you're switching, Harvey, if not just for the increasing leg pains, which can be sign or symptom of the more serious side effects of Myositis, inflammation of the muscles, or the more extreme (and extremely rare) condition, Rhabdomyolysis, severe inflammation and damage of muscles. Be sure you let your doctor know that you have been experiencing increasing muscle pain while you were on Semvastatin. They can do some lab tests to make sure you have not sustained any serious muscle damage and subsequent kidney damage. Always something the docs monitor for patients taking statins. And, to help reduce your need for a statin, be sure to keep your weight down within healthy limits, and significantly increase your cardiovascular exercise. Lots of options there if you can walk or jog - elliptical, spinning, swimming. If you can bring your weight down, and keep body fat within normal limits, plus include a significant amount of cardiovascular exercise 5 to 6 days a week, you may be able to bring your cholesterol levels down. Again, never undertake an exercise regime without running it by your doctor, first. My nursing caveat and disclaimer