Question
Can I take Tribuss with food?
5 July 2012. Related: All topics, Side effects, South Africa, Starting treatment.
Hi! I am 35 years and started taking my tribuss pill in February 2012. My problem is that I cant take the pill on an empty stomach. Can this make the pill to disfunction?
Answer
Hi,
Thank-you for your question.
Tribuss is a generic combination treatment which contains three HIV drugs. These are efavirenz, FTC and tenofovir. In the UK, this combination in a single pill is called Atripla.
Tribuss is usually recommended to be taken on an empty stomach is to reduce side effects. This is up to 60% more efavirenz is absorbed if it is taken with a high fat meal.
This would mean there is more efavirenz than you need and you may be more likely to get side effects. Side effects from efavirenz include dizziness, mood changes and sleep disturbance. Please follow this link for more information about efavirenz side effects.
However, the increased levels of efavirenz are connected to a high fat meal.
If you prefer to take Tribuss with some food this is fine, just not with fatty foods.
Please let me know if you have any more questions!
Missing one dose is unlikely to cause a problem, but it is important that this doesn’t happen regularly as this could lead to resistance. There is more information about adherence here.
if u for get to drink tribuss is a problem
Hi Palesa,
What were you taking before you started with Tribuss?
Problems sleeping can be a side effect of efavirenz- one of the drugs in Tribuss. Usually this improves after the first few weeks of treatment, but for a few people this can continue to cause problems and may be a reason to change treatment. You can read about this, and other efavirenz side effects here.
Most people find taking odmimune at night makes side effects easier to deal with. If you take them in the morning you may notice side effects like dizziness during the day. It is fine to try this though as everybody responds differently and you may find that taking them in the morning works better for you.
If you are worried about weight gain it is a good idea to discuss this with your doctor. You should not take any slimming pills without your doctors advice as these may have interactions with your HIV treatment.
Good day
I have started using Tribuss as with my old treatment I used to have nightmares. With Tribuss everything is fine am back in my flawless skin but I have insomnia every night and am gainning weight massively and I heard I cant be taking Sliming pills as my CD is less than 200. Please help. Lastly cant I take them in the morning instead of evening
Hi Sthembile,
Not everybody gets side effects with Tribuss. If you haven’t noticed any side effects after two weeks you could be one of the lucky people who find this treatment very easy to take.
You don’t need to eat boiled food because you are taking treatment. The only caution is that if you are having something high-fat to eat you should wait at least two hours after eating before you take Tribuss. This is just to make side effects easier- if you do take Tribuss together with a high fat meal it will still work the same but you might notice that side effects are stronger than when you wait for the two hours.
Please let me know if you have any more questions or need any more information!
I m taking tribuss its been 2 wks n,when can I start to c sides effects,does it mean I have to eat only boiled food now to meet with efavirance I m too scared of sides effects pls help me
Hi Puleng,
It’s important to try and stick to the same time so that you don’t forget to take any doses. It’s OK to have a window of about two hours when you take your meds. So if you are aiming to take them at 8pm so long as you take them between 7pm-9pm this will be fine.
Most people will miss a dose or be late taking it at some point. Doing this very occasionally is not likely to cause a problem, but if this starts happening every week or more often it’s important to discuss this with your doctor.
There is more information about adherence here.
Hi is realy important to stick on axect time when taking tribuss?
Hi Kate,
Please do not worry- you are not losing your mind. Tribuss contains a drug called efavirenz that can cause side effects like you are experiencing. These can include problems sleeping, strange dreams, anxiety and mood changes. Some people- less commonly- can experience severe mental health side effects including hallucinations.
It’s important that you talk to your doctor about this. Although most people find that these side effects improve after the first few weeks of treatment for some people these side effects can be too much to cope with and they may need to change treatment soon after starting. There are alternative drugs to efavirenz which do not have these side effects. You do not have to put up with these side effects if you are worried about them.
For more information please see our side effects guide. Your email address suggests that you are in South Africa. If you need support or information about HIV treatment in South Africa you could contact the Treatment Action Campaign.
I started to take tribuss on 16 September 2013,the thing is i cant sleep at all especial after 30minutes take it ,my body became so weak,pain loose mind like i see things that are not there and the thing is this thing is happening close to 4hours without sleeping.I am loosing my mind or what since i took this medication ?Please explain to me what is going on or it have to be like that .