Drug & supplement interaction

Barley + Methylene Blue

Methylene Blue brand names: Urolene Blue, Provayblue.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Barley and Methylene Blue 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 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

Barley and Methylene Blue

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 Methylene Blue and Barley 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.

Barley safety at a glance

Barley overall Generally safe Barley is safe for most people when eaten as a normal food, but it contains gluten.
Pregnancy Likely Safe When used orally in amounts commonly found in foods. Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Use caution Barley as a food is considered fine, but there is little safety data on concentrated barley supplements while breastfeeding.

Pregnancy & breastfeeding ratings are from Natural Medicines (Therapeutic Research Center) — the full detail is in the Special populations card below. Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Methylene Blue and Barley? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Methylene Blue

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Methylene Blue is filed under 3 classifications — serotonergic drugs, serotonergic drugs, oral drugs. Barley has documented interactions with 1 drug class — the most serious being triclabendazole (egaten) (moderate) — and none of Methylene Blue’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

Barley Does Interact With Other Medications

Barley has 1 moderate known drug interaction in our database — Methylene Blue 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 Barley

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

What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Barley and Methylene Blue May Share a Side Effect

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. One of them is worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • A severe allergic reaction Worth acting on Additional detail

    Barley

    “Orally, consumption of beer has been reported to cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals. Symptoms included tingling in the face, lip, and tongue, angioedema, generalized urticaria, chest tightness, dyspnea, cough, fainting, and rhinoconjunctivitis. It can also cause anaphylaxis in sensitive individuals.”

    Barley · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in asthma.

    6 sources cited
    1. 33722. Curioni, A., Santucci, B., Cristaudo, A., Canistraci, C., Pietravalle, M., Simonato, B., and Giannattasio, M. Urticaria from beer: an immediate hypersensitivity reaction due to a 10- kDa protein derived from barley. Clin Exp Allergy 1999;29(3):407-413. PubMed
    2. 33724. Fernandez-Anaya, S., Crespo, J. F., Rodriguez, J. R., Daroca, P., Carmona, E., Herraez, L., and Lopez-Rubio, A. Beer anaphylaxis. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1999;103(5 Pt 1):959-960.
    3. 317. Fernandez-Anaya S, Crespo JF, Rodriguez JR, et al. Beer anaphylaxis. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1999;103:959-60.
    4. 33762. van Ketel, W. G. Immediate type allergy to malt in beer. Contact Dermatitis 1980;6(4):297-298. PubMed
    5. 33735. Cronin, E. Contact dermatitis from barley dust. Contact Dermatitis 1979;5(3):196. PubMed
    6. 33770. Gutgesell, C. and Fuchs, T. Contact urticaria from beer. Contact Dermatitis 1995;33(6):436-437. PubMed

    Methylene Blue

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

Reported for Barley but not commonly for Methylene Blue: stomach upset, bloating or gas, an allergic reaction and chest pain.

Effects for Methylene Blue come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Barley 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.

Special populations

Barley in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy Likely Safe

When used orally in amounts commonly found in foods.

Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe

When barley sprouts are consumed in relatively high doses. Excessive amounts of barley sprouts should not be consumed during pregnancy.

DISCLAIMER: This tool is intended for informational purposes only, and should not be interpreted as specific medical advice. Patients should consult with a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about therapies and/or health conditions.© 2026 Therapeutic Research Center

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Methylene Blue

This page covers Barley only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Methylene Blue page lists 38 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Lithium (major), 5-htp (moderate), Acetyl-l-carnitine (moderate) and Ayahuasca (moderate).

By severity: 2 major · 25 moderate · 11 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Methylene Blue page

“The pairing I would worry about first with methylene blue (Urolene Blue, Provayblue) is anything that raises serotonin, and lithium heads that group with a major rating. Methylene blue inhibits monoamine oxidase A, the enzyme that breaks serotonin down, so combining it with serotonin-boosting supplements can tip someone into serotonin…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Methylene Blue interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 2,448 real supplement products containing Barley, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Barley. Even though Barley itself has no known interaction with Methylene Blue, 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 Barley and Methylene Blue 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 Barley
Top 25%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Methylene Blue
Top 5%

#53 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 Barley reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Barley and Methylene Blue records this page draws on were last updated July 11, 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 Barley

What is Barley?

Barley
  • High cholesterol
  • Heart health support
  • Blood sugar support
  • Digestive regularity and fiber
  • General nutrition

Barley is a nutritious whole grain that is a good source of soluble fiber called beta-glucan, which has solid evidence for modestly lowering LDL ('bad') cholesterol when eaten regularly. It is safe as a food for most people, but those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity should avoid it since it contains gluten. Talk to your pharmacist or doctor before using concentrated barley supplements, especially if you have a health condition.

Hordeum vulgare · Poaceae · Grain (seed), and sometimes young leaves/grass and bran · Whole grain, flour, flakes, barley bran, beta-glucan supplements, barley grass powder, tea, and capsules

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

Barley: dosing

There is no single official supplement dose for barley. For cholesterol benefits, research has generally used a few grams of barley beta-glucan per day, taken as part of the diet, but the exact amount can vary by product.Because products differ widely in strength and form, the best approach is to follow the directions on the product label.

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

Read the full Barley monograph & all interactions
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Barley

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

0Major
1Moderate
0Minor
2,828No known interaction
Moderate

1 interaction

No interaction 2,828 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Barley References

The 15 references that drive our Barley 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. Brinker F. Herb Contraindications and Drug Interactions. 2nd ed. Sandy, OR: Eclectic Medical Publications, 1998.
  2. Fernandez-Anaya S, Crespo JF, Rodriguez JR, et al. Beer anaphylaxis. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1999;103:959-60.
  3. Lembo A, Camilleri M. Chronic constipation. N Engl J Med 2003;349:1360-8. . PubMed
  4. Ferre, I., Giraldez, F. J., Alvarez-Bujidos, M. L., and Mantecon, A. R. Influence of barley supplement on plasma concentration of triclabendazole metabolites in sheep. Vet.Rec. 11-22-1997;141(21):549-551. PubMed
  5. Curioni, A., Santucci, B., Cristaudo, A., Canistraci, C., Pietravalle, M., Simonato, B., and Giannattasio, M. Urticaria from beer: an immediate hypersensitivity reaction due to a 10- kDa protein derived from barley. Clin Exp Allergy 1999;29(3):407-413. PubMed
  6. Fernandez-Anaya, S., Crespo, J. F., Rodriguez, J. R., Daroca, P., Carmona, E., Herraez, L., and Lopez-Rubio, A. Beer anaphylaxis. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1999;103(5 Pt 1):959-960.
  7. Cronin, E. Contact dermatitis from barley dust. Contact Dermatitis 1979;5(3):196. PubMed
  8. Block, G., Tse, K. S., Kijek, K., Chan, H., and Chan-Yeung, M. Baker's asthma. Studies of the cross-antigenicity between different cereal grains. Clin Allergy 1984;14(2):177-185.
  9. van Ketel, W. G. Immediate type allergy to malt in beer. Contact Dermatitis 1980;6(4):297-298. PubMed
  10. Ellis, H. J., Doyle, A. P., Day, P., Wieser, H., and Ciclitira, P. J. Demonstration of the presence of coeliac-activating gliadin-like epitopes in malted barley. Int Arch Allergy Immunol. 1994;104(3):308-310. PubMed
  11. Vidal, C. and Gonzalez-Quintela, A. Food-induced and occupational asthma due to barley flour. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 1995;75(2):121-124.
  12. Gutgesell, C. and Fuchs, T. Contact urticaria from beer. Contact Dermatitis 1995;33(6):436-437. PubMed
  13. Baker, P. G. and Read, A. E. Oats and barley toxicity in coeliac patients. Postgrad.Med J 1976;52(607):264-268. PubMed
  14. Nakase, M., Usui, Y., Alvarez-Nakase, A. M., Adachi, T., Urisu, A., Nakamura, R., Aoki, N., Kitajima, K., and Matsuda, T. Cereal allergens: rice-seed allergens with structural similarity to wheat and barley allergens. Allergy 1998;53(46 Suppl):55-57. PubMed
  15. Pereira, F., Rafael, M., and Lacerda, M. H. Contact dermatitis from barley. Contact Dermatitis 1998;39(5):261-262. 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 Barley and Methylene Blue Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Barley with Methylene Blue?
We do not list a known interaction between Barley and Methylene Blue. 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 Barley and Methylene Blue have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to one 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.
How was the Barley and Methylene Blue combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Methylene Blue is filed under 3 classifications, and Barley has documented interactions with 1 drug class — none of Methylene Blue'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 Barley interact with any other medications?
Yes. Barley has 1 documented drug interaction in our database — Methylene Blue 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 Methylene Blue interact with any supplements?
Yes. Methylene Blue has documented interactions with 38 supplements in our database — Barley is not one of them. The Methylene Blue 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 Methylene Blue and Barley?

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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.