Klinisch relevante Wechselwirkungen zwischen Arzneimitteln und Lebensmitteln

Food-drug interactions are much more complex than drug-drug interactions and they may lead to serious risks for the patients affected as well. The consequences of an over-looked food-drug interaction may reach from reduced effectiveness and total loss of effectiveness to life-threatening overdosage. But certain drugs also directly affect appetite, body weight and sense of taste, which can cause treatment failure, avoidable adverse effects, excessive diagnostic measures and overtreatment as well. Although risks of these interactions may be serious, often neither patients nor physicians are aware of the causal relationship. To provide safety and strengthen the respective competence, this overview presents the current knowledge of food-drug interactions. Therefore, basic factors of food-drug interactions including physico-chemical contexts are presented. The special section illustrates the effects of drugs on food intake or nutrient use as well as the clinical relevance of drug-induced dysgeusias. Finally, the most important food specific interactions are discussed, as they deserve particular attention due to their prevalence or the severity of their adverse effects.