Taking anticoagulants? Here is what to avoid on your plate

Oct 20, 2014 Ruchira Dhoke Did You Know?, Lifestyle & Health 0

It’s been said that what you eat and drink affects the way your medicines work in the body.

What will a possible food-drug interaction do?

It can prevent the medicine from working the way it should
It can cause a side effect from the medicine to get worse or better
It can cause a new side effect

It is very important to keep in mind that a medicine can also change the way your body uses a food and these changes can be harmful.

The drug Warfarin is an anticoagulant or blood thinner which prevents or reduces the formation of blood clots. It is generally prescribed in cardiovascular diseases to prevent myocardial infarct or ischemic strokes and blood clots in veins and arteries.

Blood clots are formed through a series of chemical reactions in the body which require vitamin K. Warfarin decreases the activity of vitamin K thus lengthening the time it takes for a clot to form. Laboratory tests like the International Normalized Ratio (INR) and Prothrombin Time (PT) give measurements of the time it takes blood to clot. Individuals at risk for developing blood clots are prescribed with warfarin to lengthen the time it takes for a clot to form; resulting in a prolonged INR/PT. INR/PT should ideally be measured every month in patients undertaking warfarin to make sure it stays in the desired range.

It is found that the food that are high in vitamin K have the ability to affect the way warfarin works in your body. Vitamin K‘s role is to help the blood to clot which is completely against warfarin. It’s like a see-saw, the more vitamin K-rich foods you eat, lower the levels of warfarin are in the body. This means your INR (International normalized ratio) will be lower, and you will be more likely to form a blood clot. Likewise, if you eat too little vitamin K, it may cause your blood to become too thin.

It is difficult for most of us to completely avoid all sources of Vitamin K containing foods. The best alternative is to make sure that same amount of Vitamin K is taken on a regular basis.

The following are the sources of high Vitamin K:

Kale ,Spinach, Broccoli ,Turnip greens, Cauliflower ,Chick peas, Brussels sprouts, Green tea, Beef, pork, or chicken livers Soybean oil, Soy protein products (including tofu) Vitamins A & E (large doses).

These food items need not be eliminated from your diet but maintaining the consistency in your daily eating pattern is the key.

Your medication can be adjusted to the amount of vitamin K typically in your diet. If you suddenly increase or decrease the amount of vitamin K in your diet, your medication will not work properly.

anticoagulants, blood clot, cardiovascular diseases, International normalized ratio, Prothrombin, vitamin K, warfarin

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Ruchira Dhoke

A qualified medical microbiologist with an avidity to read enchant a deep passion for creating a good impacting masterpiece with my words .I am very fond of good old English literature and like listening to music and paint in my free time.