Are Oranges as bad as grapefruit ?

[weasel]

       Howdy do !

       I have been eating oranges  a lot lately .

          Bob was reading an article that said  oranges effect
       cholesterol mecations ; been taking cholesterol meds for 6 months now , I        am also  wondering if they effect
        HIV MEDS .  I have searched , I don't get far 


                                        thank you ,   
                                                           Carl


    I'm trying to get my Summer Body back ' will need it for the AMG Gathering Memphis 2015     

[initforlife]

I haven't read anything on oranges. Carl. but just don't eat the dog treats! 

[leatherman]

I, too, haven't heard anything about OJ and HIV meds.

googling "grapefruit hiv meds" gave me this aidmeds article
http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/Grapefruit_Medications_1667_23319.shtml

Certain Meds Mixed With Grapefruit Juice Can Be a Fatal Cocktail
The Canadian scientist who first discovered that grapefruit can alter certain prescription drug levels in the body has released an updated list of 85 medications that may cause such reactions, 43 of which can cause fatal interactions, The New York Times reports. A clinical pharmacologist at the Lawson Health Research Institute in London, Ontario, David Bailey, PhD, updated his list to reflect releases of new medications over the past four years. The list includes drugs to treat HIV, high cholesterol and cancer, as well as immunosuppressants, psychotropic medications, synthetic opioids, birth control and estrogen.

How often such reactions occur is up for debate, but Bailey stresses that however rare they may be, anyone taking prescription medication and consuming grapefruit juice or grapefruit, as well as pomelo, lime and marmalade, should consult the list of drugs and monitor for symptoms that may indicate a side effect of the combination. Timing of grapefruit consumption is not relevant; it must be avoided entirely to avoid the potential interaction.

To see the full list of medications, click here.
http://www.cmaj.ca/content/suppl/2012/11/26/cmaj.120951.DC1/grape-bailey-1-at.pdf

this article says oranges reduce cholesterol
http://www.joybauer.com/high-cholesterol/best-foods-for-high-cholesterol.aspx

HOWEVER this one warns about orange juice and several meds
http://blackdoctor.org/3071/why-can-t-i-take-my-pills-with-orange-juice/

[weasel]

   I'm more confused    I guess I will eat oranges .
   My cholesterol   is threw the roof !

    As for Mental MEDS  , I need all the help I can get .

     Thank you Leatherman 

     Initforlife , It was only a spoon full ................ 

                                                         Weasel 

[AusShep]

   I'm more confused    I guess I will eat oranges .
   My cholesterol   is threw the roof !
...

Are you taking meds for the cholesterol?  If not, do it.  Not worth taking the cardiovascular risk without it.

[weasel]

Are you taking meds for the cholesterol?  If not, do it.  Not worth taking the cardiovascular risk without it.

    Hi AusShep  , Nice to meet you   


    I am taking Fenofibrate  for 6 months now .

     I take Medicine for HIV   and Cholesterol   , also  supplements :   B-complex , Vitamin D & Niacin .

    Along with mental meds 

   As   Anne would say :   I am paying for fancy pee 

    It may be  in my head , but I feel better using them .       

    I will find out  on my next visit if the Fenofibrate is working  ,   Last time my labs were all screwed up 


                                                    Hoping to live to 93 ,
                                                                                             Carl

[phenethylamine]

Ok, So the "Grapefruit effect" has a lot in common with antiviral booster meds like Ritonavir, Cobicistat..but way, way weaker. Certain families of molecules in the citrus family are believed to act as mild intestinal p-glycoprotein inhibitors (pumps foreign substances out of the body)... and P450 enzyme inhibitors (mostly CYP3A4, which seems to be the most aggressive enzyme involved in destroying antivirals.)

I've seen some concern, that this "interaction" might make HIV meds ineffective, but it's much more likely it will make them stronger... Some people might be sensitive to this effect, and for them it can result in increased side effects, and rarely toxicity. It's hard to predict sensitivity, cause everyone produces different amounts of enzymes. If you eat grapefruit, and don't notice anything... then you are most likely OK. If you start feeling sick, simply stop.... but treatment failure from grapefruit juice seems very unlikely cause it hasn't been found to "induce" enzymes, only "inhibit".  Most of the contraindications involve increased liver enzymes not decreased.

Things get a little more complicated with boosted meds. Since grapefruit juice is a weak booster, it might "compete" with the stronger prescription booster, leading to inadequate boosting. Haha so in other words... the weak inhibitor, might inhibit the stronger inhibitor, by stealing it's place. Woah tongue twister. Alternatively, if it doesn't compete... it might have an additive effect,.. so if the prescription booster just left your system, and you throw in another booster... you might become overboosted, LOL forgiven my lack of technical terms. This isn't exact science and its hard to predict the kinetics of such things through the body.

As for the original question. Grapefruit seems to be the most potent in the Citrus family. Pomelo might be second. After that it's hard to say... mother nature doesn't just produce one chemical that  can be easily measured and compared, she produces an entire family of Furanocoumarin's of which there are tons, and tons of similar molecules, with slight changes that do the same thing with slight differences in duration/potency...so the total effect is the sum of its parts... and lots of those parts are still being studied/discovered...so I don't want to say oranges aren't as bad... cause who knows what they will find in three years. ...but like... so far.... no one has really had any issues with them. It's called the "grapefruit effect" not the "citrus effect".

I'm not really familiar with cholesterol meds... but I found an interesting link with Naringenin a different molecule in grapefruit, oranges that inhibits CYP1A2 that might have effects on cholesterol. Will look into it later.

Finally, just want to say hope I didn't overwhelm anyone with all of this. In my personal opinion...I don't think a single grapefruit is strong enough to do much, but risk probably increases if you like... press 24 of them into a single drink and that's all you drink. Maybe watch out for sports supplements, they sometime add orange extracts or synthetic versions to boost caffeine.

I tried my best to explain things in my own words. Any other questions just ask.
I'm stopping here due to headache. LOL

[terrymoore]

Hi Weasel,
I also have a cholesterol problem. My "borderline-high" cholesterol shot through the roof as soon as i started treatment and the doc put me on statins. After around 2 months it was back to normal range (except my HDL is still too low). However, i have also made some major life-style changes - i have reduced alcohol intake by about 90%, i train cardio 3-4 times a week, weight-lift 3 times a week, and have changed my diet - lots of fiber, no animal fats, no white starches and lots of beans (basically i eat like a goat now  ). Of course i occasionally indulge in a bbq'd rack of ribs or slice of pizza, but compared to before, i'm like a monk!
The reason i am telling you this, is that i have been made aware of the great debate surrounding statins. A friend of mine (he is HIV-), has had a cholesterol problem from a very young age, and after years of pills (and their side-affects), he decided to make a dramatic life-style change. I think it is a bit extreme, but the end result is he no longer takes statins. He eats tons of fats, eggs and other stuff the doctor told me to stay away from, and his numbers are great for the first time in his life. He also looks much better and lost tons of weight and claims to feel much better. So, my point here, is not to convince you to stop your cholesterol pills - in fact, i still take mine. My point is really to ask whether you have made any life-style changes - food, exercise etc? I believe that these changes may be just as important as the pills for your cholesterol in tackling that problem.
Regarding the grapefruit/orange - i don't have much to add. I used to eat pomelo's on a regular basis and have now stopped - i guess better safe than sorry.

[pozitiveandblessed978]

Oranges are citrus but should be fine consult your pharmacist. 

[NY2011]

my cholesterol number suck. total cholesterol is 164.