Drug & supplement interaction

Bee Venom + Guselkumab

Guselkumab brand name: Tremfya.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Bee Venom has a moderate interaction with Guselkumab. Bee venom might stimulate immune system activity.Theoretically, bee venom might interfere with immunosuppressant therapy.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityModerate
LikelihoodPossible
EvidenceD
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Bee Venom and Guselkumab

Here is the interaction we found between these two, with the evidence behind it.

Moderate

IMMUNOSUPPRESSANTS

Why this applies to Guselkumab

Guselkumab falls under IMMUNOSUPPRESSANTS — the group Bee Venom interacts with.

Bee venom might stimulate immune system activity.Theoretically, bee venom might interfere with immunosuppressant therapy. Immunosuppressant drugs include azathioprine (Imuran), basiliximab (Simulect), cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), daclizumab (Zenapax), muromonab-CD3 (OKT3, Orthoclone OKT3), mycophenolate (CellCept), tacrolimus (FK506, Prograf), sirolimus (Rapamune), prednisone (Deltasone, Orasone), corticosteroids (glucocorticoids), and others.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Interaction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the gist with Tremfya (guselkumab): it's a lab-made antibody that calms down a part of your overactive immune system to clear up psoriasis and ease psoriatic arthritis. Bee venom seems to do the opposite, it may rev the immune system up. So in theory, using bee venom could push back against the very effect you're paying for with Tremfya, meaning your skin patches or joint symptoms might not stay as well controlled.

I want to be honest about the evidence here, though. This concern comes from lab and animal studies, not from real people taking these two together, so it's more of a theoretical caution than a proven problem. Bee venom can also trigger serious allergic reactions on its own. Before trying it, please run it by your doctor or pharmacist.

References
  1. Cuende E, Fraguas J, Pena JE, et al. Beekeepers' arthropathy. J Rheumatol 1999;26:2684-90.
  2. Bomalaski JS, Ford T, Hudson AP, Clark MA. Phospholipase A2-activating protein induces the synthesis of IL-1 and TNF in human monocytes. J Immunol 1995;154:4027-31. DOI

What These Ratings Mean

Every interaction above is graded three ways — here’s the key to each label.

Severity how clinically significant the interaction is
Major

Clinically significant. Avoid the combination, or use only under close professional supervision.

Moderate

Usually worth avoiding or managing — may need monitoring, a dose change, or timing apart.

Minor

Generally not serious. Be aware of it and mention it to your pharmacist.

Likelihood how strong the evidence is that the interaction actually happens in people
  • LikelyWell-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction.
  • ProbableInteraction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports.
  • PossibleInteraction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.
  • UnlikelyInteraction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.
Evidence the quality of the studies behind the rating (graded A–D)
  • AHigh-quality meta-analysis (quantitative systematic review).
  • BCase-control study.
  • CConsensus.
  • DAnecdotal evidence.

These ratings are for information only. Never start, stop, or otherwise change your therapy before speaking with your provider.

Keep it in perspective

Bee Venom Also Interacts With Other Medications

Bee Venom has 120 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Guselkumab one above is one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Bee Venom

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

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Guselkumab

This page covers Bee Venom only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Guselkumab page lists 53 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Active Hexose Correlated Compound (ahcc) (moderate), Alfalfa (moderate), American Ginseng (moderate), Andrographis (moderate) and Ashwagandha (moderate).

By severity: 52 moderate · 1 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Guselkumab page

“Guselkumab (Tremfya) quiets an overactive branch of the immune system to control psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, and all 53 supplements on this list interact the same way, by potentially revving that system back up. None is rated major, 52 are moderate and one is minor, so for most people this reads as a watch list rather than a sto…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Guselkumab interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 2 real supplement products containing Bee Venom, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Bee Venom. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Guselkumab too, on top of Bee Venom — and those would not show on this page. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:

How much people look this up

Where Bee Venom and Guselkumab 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 Bee Venom
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Guselkumab
Top 10%

#172 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.

Supplement

About Bee Venom

What is Bee Venom?

Bee Venom
  • Joint pain and arthritis
  • Muscle and nerve pain
  • Bee sting allergy desensitization
  • Skin and cosmetic uses
  • Multiple sclerosis (traditional/alternative use)

Bee venom is a complex mixture of proteins and other compounds taken from honeybees and used in traditional medicine for pain and inflammation, and in conventional medicine for allergy shots to prevent severe sting reactions. Outside of supervised allergy treatment, strong evidence for its benefits is lacking, and it can cause serious allergic reactions, so it should only be used under medical supervision.

Read the full Bee Venom monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Guselkumab Injection

What Is Guselkumab Injection Used For?

Brand name: Tremfya

Tremfya (guselkumab) injection is approved to treat adults and children 6 years of age and older who weigh at least 40 kg (about 88 lbs) with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis or active psoriatic arthritis. It is also approved for adults with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease.

For plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, Tremfya is an option when systemic therapy or phototherapy is appropriate. For ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, Tremfya is approved for adult patients only — it has not been established as safe and effective for children with those conditions.

See full Guselkumab Injection drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Bee Venom

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

0Major
120Moderate
0Minor
2,709No known interaction
Moderate

120 interactions

Showing 60 of 120 moderate interactions — see all 120 on the Bee Venom page.

No interaction 2,709 drugs checked — show the list
Sources

Sources & How We Checked

Interaction details are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database. The medication overview comes from MedlinePlus.

Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists. See our data sources and editorial standards for how this information is built and checked.

Parts of this content are provided by the Therapeutic Research Center, LLC.

DISCLAIMER: Currently this does not check for drug-drug interactions. This is not an all-inclusive comprehensive list of potential interactions and is for informational purposes only. Not all interactions are known or well-reported in the scientific literature, and new interactions are continually being reported. Input is needed from a qualified healthcare provider including a pharmacist before starting any therapy. Application of clinical judgment is necessary.

© 2021 Therapeutic Research Center, LLC

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Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Bee Venom and Guselkumab Together: Common Questions

Can you take Bee Venom with Guselkumab?
There is a moderate interaction, so it may be acceptable with monitoring or timing changes — but check with your pharmacist first. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
How serious is the Bee Venom and Guselkumab interaction?
We rate it Moderate. This combination may require monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one. Consult your pharmacist before using them together.

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

Still Have a Question About Guselkumab and Bee Venom?

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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.