Resveratrol Drug Interactions: A Little Common Sense Please!

There is no other way of saying this other than, "I am simply frustrated lately."  I am frustrated by what I see as a lack of simple common sense from people.  The numbers seem to be increasing, where as with the wealth of information that is available, the missing common sense equation should be going down.

We have all experienced this at one time or another (probably multiple times) and we often just sit in disbelief or shake our heads at how irresponsible people can be with their thought processes, or lack thereof.  While I am not trying to say I am the smartest person in the world (actually I am extremely far from it) I do like to think of myself as having a solid foundation of common sense.

In the nearly two years of writing this blog, My Resveratrol Experience, I have spoken to and read comments from thousands of people.  I love this part of blogging; getting to meet new people from all over the world with similar interests.  However, lately I have seen an increase in comments that I like to refer to as, "Are you kidding me!?!" moments.

The most common, "Are you kidding me!" comments have been related to people who have decided to take resveratrol along with any other prescribed medication without discussing this with their Doctor first.  Some people even have a list of medications they are taking.  Now if you have obtained prescribed medications then a fair assumption would be you also have a primary care physician as well.  So there is absolutely no excuse for not asking your doctor how resveratrol might effect you or interact with these medications.

Even if you don't take any medication you should contact your Doctor prior to taking any supplement, whether it is resveratrol or Vitamin D.  It is just simply naive to think we know more then a trained medical professional.  Your Doctor should be very open to discussing your interest in taking supplements.  This doesn't mean they have to agree with you as to their benefits, but they should at a minimum give you an educated opinion as to whether or not it will interact negatively with a medication you are on.

Do your own research, stop taking people's uneducated opinions as facts, and ask a doctor for good advice.  If your doctor won't give it to you then find one that will.  

Resveratrol isn't the answer to all of our problems, nor will it solve world hunger, but just maybe in the future we will find some tangible benefits.  Until then, get good advice from professionals and understand that there are risks involved when taking any supplement, vitamin, or medication.

I apologize for the tone, but I can't be the only person who feels this way.  I'd like to hear your opinions either way below!

Comments

[MachineGhost]

Supplements and drugs can be checked for interactions to each other at http://www.drugs.com/sfx/

[Jeff]

With regard to "A Little Common Sense Please!":

What do you think our doctors are going to be able to tell us? Most of them have never even heard of resveratrol. The fact is anybody who starts taking this stuff is offering themselves as one of the world's guinea pigs. Until all the research is in, and that will take many years, it's really going to be on the consumer to verify for themselves that their usage of resveratrol generates more desirable side effects than undesirable ones. If you can't accept that risk, then stay away from all supplements and stick to the prescription meds that the drug companies have spent all that money researching. At this point the doctors are useless on the subject of resveratrol.

[glad]

You are right about consulting your doctor, however, that doesn't always work. For example, my doctor doesn't believe in alternative medicine. He says it's because it's not tested long enough. In the mean time he would rather pump you full of drugs as a bandaide solution. My doctor is almost useless to me. I would have to be seriously ill before seeing him. He is also getting very old and soon to retire, which means I won't even have a doctor. Seems like I don't have one anyway.