Explain about the Effect of Nutrient and Drug Interaction?

Medicines can treat and cure many health problems. Nevertheless, do you recall your doctor advising or recommending certain medications to be taken with food whereas others on an empty stomach. Have you given a thought as to why this is being advised? Well, this for the simple reason that medicines can be effected by the food we eat. Well, not all medications are affected by food, but many can be affected by what we eat and when we eat it. Sometimes, taking medications at the same time we eat may interfere with the way our stomach and intestines absorb medication. Other medications are recommended to be taken with food.

A food-drug interaction can occur when the food we eat affects the ingredients in a medication we are taking, preventing the medicine from working the way it should. Some nutrients can affect the way we metabolize certain drugs by binding with drug ingredients, thus reducing their absorption or speeding their elimination. For example, the acidity of fruit juice may decrease the effectiveness of antibiotics such as penicillin. Dairy products may blunt the infection- fighting effects of tetracycline. Anti-depressants called MA0 inhibitors are dangerous when mixed with foods or drinks that contain tyramine (beer, red wine, and some types of cheese).