Drug & supplement interaction

Banana + Mefloquine

Mefloquine brand name: Lariam.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Banana and Mefloquine in our sources. Absence of a documented interaction is not the same as proven safety, and does not guarantee one does not exist. Do not start, stop, or change a medication or supplement based on this page; confirm with your pharmacist or doctor first. Additionally, although there is no interaction, the label for Mefloquine states a food rule worth keeping to, and the two are separately associated with some of the same side effects, which would make a new symptom harder to attribute to one or the other.

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Interaction report

Banana and Mefloquine

We checked these two against our interaction database. Here is what we found.

No Known Interaction Found

We did not find a documented interaction between Mefloquine and Banana in our sources. This does not guarantee that the combination is completely free of risk — there is often limited research on supplements and herbal products, especially around drug interactions.

If you decide to take both, the practical routine is simple: add one new thing at a time and note the date you started it. If the combination is going to disagree with you, it usually shows in the first days to a couple of weeks — and a start date turns “I’ve been feeling off” into something a pharmacist can actually work with. Do not stop a prescribed medicine on your own.

Always talk with your pharmacist or doctor before making changes to your medications or supplements, particularly if you take several medications or have an ongoing health condition.

Banana safety at a glance

Banana overall Generally safe Bananas are a common, generally safe food for most people when eaten in normal amounts.
Pregnancy Generally safe Bananas as a food are considered safe in pregnancy; concentrated supplements are less studied.
Breastfeeding Generally safe Bananas as a food are considered safe while breastfeeding.

Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Mefloquine and Banana? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Mefloquine

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Mefloquine is filed under 2 classifications — seizure threshold lowering drugs, oral drugs. Banana has documented interactions with 1 drug class — the most serious being levodopa (moderate) — and none of Mefloquine’s classifications are among them.

Classification data comes from our licensed Natural Medicines dataset. A medication can belong to classes beyond those recorded there, so this describes how the check was run — it is not a safety guarantee.

Keep it in perspective

Banana Does Interact With Other Medications

Banana has 5 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Mefloquine isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Banana

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Banana. Pick one to open its full report.

What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Banana and Mefloquine May Share Several of the Same Side Effects

This is not an interaction. Neither one changes how your body handles the other, and nothing here says they react together. What our sources do show is that each has separately been linked to the effects below — so taking both can make those effects more likely to turn up, and harder to pin on one or the other if they do. 2 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Shortness of breath Worth acting on Additional detail

    Banana

    “Orally, banana has been reported to cause allergic reaction, including urticaria and redness, abdominal pain and nausea, dyspnea, and anaphylaxis. Topically, contact urticara has also been reported. Skin testing is not always accurate, even for patients with severe banana allergy.”

    Banana · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in allergic rhinitis (hay fever).

    2 sources cited
    1. 93784. Meynadier J, Meynadier JM, Guilhou JJ. [Contact urticaria in atopic patients. Apropos of 2 cases]. Ann Dermatol Venereol. 1982;109(10):871-4.
    2. 93793. Hauswirth DW, Burks AW. Banana anaphylaxis with a negative commercial skin test. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2005 Mar;115(3):632-3. PubMed

    Mefloquine

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Mefloquine. Read the label on DailyMed ›

  • Hives Worth acting on Additional detail

    Banana

    “Orally, bananas are well tolerated when consumed as food.

    Most Common Adverse Effects:

    Orally: Bloating, cramping, gas.

    Topically: Urticaria.

    Serious Adverse Effects (Rare):

    Orally: Anaphylaxis, intestinal obstruction.”

    Banana · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in flatulence.

    Mefloquine

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Mefloquine. Read the label on DailyMed ›

  • Stomach pain Additional detail

    Banana

    Recorded for Banana in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Shortness of breath above.

    Mefloquine

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Mefloquine. Read the label on DailyMed ›

  • Diarrhea / Vomiting Additional detail

    Banana

    “Orally, banana starch isolated from green bananas has resulted in bloating, gas, cramping, and softer feces. When consumed prior to exercise, fullness and bloating during exercise have been reported. In children, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal distension have been reported when banana is used in the treatment of diarrhea.”

    Banana · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in diarrhea.

    6 sources cited
    1. 93448. Ble-Castillo JL, Aparicio-Trápala MA, Francisco-Luria MU, Córdova-Uscanga R, Rodríguez-Hernández A, Méndez JD, Díaz-Zagoya JC. Effects of native banana starch supplementation on body weight and insulin sensitivity in obese type 2 diabetics. Int J Environ PubMed
    2. 93449. Jiménez-Domínguez G, Ble-Castillo JL, Aparicio-Trápala MA, Juárez-Rojop IE, Tovilla-Zárate CA, Ble-Castillo DJ, García-Vázquez C, Olvera-Hernández V, Pérez-Pimienta B, Diaz-Zagoya JC, Mendez JD. Effects of Acute Ingestion of Native Banana Starch on Glycem
    3. 110619. Arias-Córdova Y, Ble-Castillo JL, García-Vázquez C, et al. Resistant Starch Consumption Effects on Glycemic Control and Glycemic Variability in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Crossover Study. Nutrients 2021;13(11):4052. PubMed
    4. 93459. Nieman DC, Gillitt ND, Sha W, et al. Metabolomics-Based Analysis of Banana and Pear Ingestion on Exercise Performance and Recovery. J Proteome Res 2015;14(12):5367-77. doi: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.5b00909. PubMed
    5. 93461. Rabbani GH, Ahmed S, Hossain I, Islam R, Marni F, Akhtar M, Majid N. Green banana reduces clinical severity of childhood shigellosis: a double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2009 May;28(5):420-5. PubMed
    6. 93777. Schoeffl V, Varatorn R, Blinnikov O, Vidamaly V. Intestinal obstruction due to phytobezoars of banana seeds: a case report. Asian J Surg. 2004 Oct;27(4):348-51. PubMed

    Mefloquine

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Mefloquine. Read the label on DailyMed ›

  • Nausea Additional detail

    Banana

    Recorded for Banana in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Shortness of breath above.

    Mefloquine

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Mefloquine. Read the label on DailyMed ›

Reported for Banana but not commonly for Mefloquine: a bowel blockage, bloating or gas, an allergic reaction and high potassium.

Effects for Mefloquine come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Banana come from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, quoted above. Wording is matched across sources by our own clinical vocabulary, so treat this as a prompt to pay attention, not a diagnosis.

How to take them

Some Mefloquine Products Have a Food Rule — Banana Should Not Break It

At least one FDA label for a product containing Mefloquine says to take it on an empty stomach. Most supplements — Banana included — are taken with a meal, so the easy mistake is swallowing both together at breakfast. Where that rule applies, keep Mefloquine on its own and move Banana to a meal later in the day.

This may not be true of your version. Food instructions belong to the product, not the ingredient: two Mefloquine products can carry different directions, and extended-release forms often differ from immediate-release ones. The label we read is quoted below — check the directions on your own box or bottle, or ask your pharmacist, for how to take the exact product you were given.

The drug should not be taken on an empty stomach and should be administered with at least 8 oz (240 mL) of water.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Mefloquine — where that label names a specific product, the instruction is that product's. Read the label on DailyMed ›

A food rule is not an interaction — it is about how much of the medicine you absorb. The directions that came with your own product, and your pharmacist, outrank anything on this page.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Mefloquine

This page covers Banana only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Mefloquine page lists 23 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Biofeedback (moderate), Coffee Charcoal (moderate), Dendrobium (moderate) and European Mandrake (moderate).

By severity: 1 major · 13 moderate · 9 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Mefloquine page

“Mefloquine (Lariam) prevents and treats malaria and carries its own well-known warnings about seizures and psychiatric effects, so I take this interaction list more seriously than most. Six of the 23 supplements on file, including ginkgo and melatonin, may lower the seizure threshold, a poor match for a drug with mefloquine's neurologi…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Mefloquine interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Banana as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 985 real supplement products containing Banana, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Banana. Even though Banana itself has no known interaction with Mefloquine, another ingredient on your label might. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:

How much people look this up

Where Banana and Mefloquine Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Banana
Top 25%

#344 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Mefloquine
Steady interest

#2,375 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Where does our data come from?
  • Source: the Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) clinical database — the evidence-graded professional reference for herb & supplement interactions.
  • Citation library: 103,510 references behind our interaction content, 65,311 of them resolved to verified PubMed/DOI sources. See every Banana reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Banana and Mefloquine records this page draws on were last updated July 10, 2026.
  • What “no known interaction” means: no documented interaction in the sources above — not a guarantee of safety. Supplements are studied far less than prescription drugs, so we say exactly what the evidence supports, and nothing more.
Data structure & sourcing designed and verified by .
Supplement

About Banana

What is Banana?

Banana
  • Source of potassium and energy
  • Digestive health and diarrhea
  • Blood pressure support
  • Heartburn and stomach ulcers (traditional)
  • Weight management

Bananas are a nutritious, widely eaten fruit that provide potassium, fiber, vitamin B6, and quick energy, and they are part of a healthy diet. While some traditional uses (like easing diarrhea or supporting blood pressure) have plausible support, most specific health claims are not strongly proven. For most people bananas are a safe food, but those with kidney problems or a latex-fruit allergy should be cautious.

Musa acuminata · Musaceae · Fruit (most common); peel, flower, and leaves are also used in some traditions · Fresh fruit, dried banana, banana powder, green (unripe) banana flour, smoothies

An interaction check asks whether these two react with each other — it does not ask whether Banana is a good idea for someone in your situation. Here is what our Banana record says about it on its own.

Banana: dosing

There is no official medicinal dose for bananas. As a food, one to a few bananas per day fits easily into a healthy diet for most people.For banana supplements, powders, or green banana flour, a standardized dose has not been established.

From our Banana monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.

Read the full Banana monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Mefloquine

What Is Mefloquine Used For?

Brand name: Lariam

Mefloquine Hydrochloride tablets are used to treat mild to moderate acute malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum (including strains resistant to chloroquine) and Plasmodium vivax. They are also used to prevent malaria infections, including chloroquine-resistant strains of P. falciparum, in people traveling to malaria-endemic areas.

Important note: mefloquine does not eliminate the liver stage of P. vivax, so patients treated for P. vivax malaria usually need an additional medication (such as primaquine) afterward to prevent relapse.

See full Mefloquine drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Banana

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Banana — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

0Major
5Moderate
0Minor
2,824No known interaction
Moderate

5 interactions

No interaction 2,824 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Banana References

The 11 references that drive our Banana monograph and interaction data, from the evidence-graded Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) database. Citations with a link open the study on PubMed or the publisher’s site.

  1. Ble-Castillo JL, Aparicio-Trápala MA, Francisco-Luria MU, Córdova-Uscanga R, Rodríguez-Hernández A, Méndez JD, Díaz-Zagoya JC. Effects of native banana starch supplementation on body weight and insulin sensitivity in obese type 2 diabetics. Int J Environ PubMed
  2. Jiménez-Domínguez G, Ble-Castillo JL, Aparicio-Trápala MA, Juárez-Rojop IE, Tovilla-Zárate CA, Ble-Castillo DJ, García-Vázquez C, Olvera-Hernández V, Pérez-Pimienta B, Diaz-Zagoya JC, Mendez JD. Effects of Acute Ingestion of Native Banana Starch on Glycem
  3. Nieman DC, Gillitt ND, Sha W, et al. Metabolomics-Based Analysis of Banana and Pear Ingestion on Exercise Performance and Recovery. J Proteome Res 2015;14(12):5367-77. doi: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.5b00909. PubMed
  4. Rabbani GH, Ahmed S, Hossain I, Islam R, Marni F, Akhtar M, Majid N. Green banana reduces clinical severity of childhood shigellosis: a double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2009 May;28(5):420-5. PubMed
  5. Schoeffl V, Varatorn R, Blinnikov O, Vidamaly V. Intestinal obstruction due to phytobezoars of banana seeds: a case report. Asian J Surg. 2004 Oct;27(4):348-51. PubMed
  6. Don M, Longo G. Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome due to banana: an uncommon entity. Eur Ann Allergy Clin Immunol. 2013 Apr;45(2):61-2.
  7. Tazoe M, Narita M, Sakuta R, Nagai T, Narita N. Hyperkalemia and hyperdopaminemia induced by an obsessive eating of banana in an anorexia nervosa adolescent. Brain Dev. 2007 Jul;29(6):369-72. PubMed
  8. Meynadier J, Meynadier JM, Guilhou JJ. [Contact urticaria in atopic patients. Apropos of 2 cases]. Ann Dermatol Venereol. 1982;109(10):871-4.
  9. Hauswirth DW, Burks AW. Banana anaphylaxis with a negative commercial skin test. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2005 Mar;115(3):632-3. PubMed
  10. Hotozuka S, Yasu T, Hikita E, Shirota M. Interaction Between Levodopa and Banana in a Patient With Parkinson's Disease. Am J Ther 2022;29(4):465-467. PubMed
  11. Arias-Córdova Y, Ble-Castillo JL, García-Vázquez C, et al. Resistant Starch Consumption Effects on Glycemic Control and Glycemic Variability in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Crossover Study. Nutrients 2021;13(11):4052. PubMed

Medication overviews come from MedlinePlus (NIH); supplement label data from the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database. Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Banana and Mefloquine Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Banana with Mefloquine?
We do not list a known interaction between Banana and Mefloquine. That does not guarantee the combination is risk-free, so confirm with your pharmacist or doctor — especially if you take other medications or have a health condition.
Do Banana and Mefloquine have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to 6 of the same effects. That is not an interaction: neither changes how your body handles the other. It does mean that if one of those effects turns up, it can be harder to tell which one is behind it. They are listed on this page with the source behind each.
Should I take Banana and Mefloquine at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Mefloquine says to take it on an empty stomach, and supplements are usually taken with a meal — so taking them together at breakfast is the easy mistake. Where that applies, keep Mefloquine on its own and move Banana to a meal later in the day. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient, so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Banana and Mefloquine combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Mefloquine is filed under 2 classifications, and Banana has documented interactions with 1 drug class — none of Mefloquine's classifications are among them. A medication can belong to classes beyond those recorded in our dataset, so this describes how the check was run rather than guaranteeing safety.
Does Banana interact with any other medications?
Yes. Banana has 5 documented drug interactions in our database — Mefloquine is simply not one of them. If you take anything else, it is worth checking each one; they are all listed on this page.
Does Mefloquine interact with any supplements?
Yes. Mefloquine has documented interactions with 23 supplements in our database — Banana is not one of them. The Mefloquine interaction page linked on this page lists every one, ranked by severity.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

Still Have a Question About Mefloquine and Banana?

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This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.