Question
Will eating garlic or garlic tablets interact with my HIV medication?
13 April 2011. Related: All topics, Drug interactions, Supplements and herbs.
Answer
Thank you for your question.
Garlic as part of your diet is perfectly fine, but higher dose supplements have the potential to interact with some drugs.
This depends which HIV meds you are taking. Garlic supplements have the potential to interact with NNRTIs and PIs. Saquniavir has a caution to not be taken with garlic supplements.
Garlic is broken down by the body is the same way as these HIV meds. Taking both together could change the amount of HIV meds in your blood. Talk to your doctor about this so that your drug levels can be monitored when you are taking the garlic supplements in case any adjustments need to be made to the dosage of your HIV meds.
Hi Emmy, the spice mix you had made will not risk interactions with PEP. PEP will still be effective and you can spice your food.
Please see here for more information about PEP: https://i-base.info/qa/factsheets/pep-faq
Hi
I made and use a mix powder of garlic, turmeric and ginger to spice my meals as usual in the first week of PEP (Volutrip TLD) but I noticed some tiny colourless pimples/dots on my thighs and a node along the side of jaw bone on the 8th day, so I decided to stop the spices on my own. I have since been bothered cos my exposure was with a positive woman in a two time condom break with immediate replacements each time. Later a rash on the neck called heat rash by doctor. PEP started in less than an hour after exposure and never missed or delayed though it’s been earlier most times cos I’m trying to target earlier in the morning for drugs and didn’t want to sharply drop the time by significant hours difference. Please am I not at more risks with the spices?
Hi Lance, no there is no risk of interaction. Garlic in a normal diet (even if it is a lot) is safe to take. There will be no interaction.
There is only a risk of interaction when garlic is taken as a supplement. The level of garlic in a supplement is many times higher than what is in an ordinary diet.
I currently use TLD as PEP. If my food contain insignificant (or moderate) amount of garlic or minced/chopped as spices (such as fried foods in Asian), are there any possible drug interaction? As I know that garlic could interact with drugs.
Given that I could avoid eating garlic piece but still eat minced minced/chopped garlic.