Drug & supplement interaction

Betony + 6-Mercaptopurine

6-Mercaptopurine brand name: Purinethol.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated June 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 13, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine 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.

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Interaction report

Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine

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 6-Mercaptopurine and Betony 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.

Betony safety at a glance

Betony overall Use caution Generally used in traditional teas, but human safety data are limited, so use with care.
Pregnancy Avoid Traditionally avoided in pregnancy because of possible effects on the uterus; safety is not established.
Breastfeeding Avoid There is not enough safety information, so avoid use while breastfeeding.

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

Still wondering about combining 6-Mercaptopurine and Betony? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for 6-Mercaptopurine

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. 6-Mercaptopurine is filed under 3 classifications — immunosuppressants, hepatotoxic drugs, oral drugs. Betony has documented interactions with 1 drug class — the most serious being antihypertensive drugs (moderate) — and none of 6-Mercaptopurine’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

Betony Does Interact With Other Medications

Betony has 172 moderate known drug interactions in our database — 6-Mercaptopurine isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Moderate 172 No known interaction 2,658 (incl. 6-Mercaptopurine)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Betony

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

What to actually watch for

What 6-Mercaptopurine’s Own FDA Label Lists

This is not an interaction — none of it involves Betony. These are the most notable effects listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of 6-Mercaptopurine’s own FDA label, for the medication by itself. Knowing the drug’s own list makes it easier to work out the likely cause if something new turns up while you take both. 9 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Low blood sugar Worth acting on
  • A low white blood cell count Worth acting on mentioned in 11.0% of FDA reports for 6-Mercaptopurine
  • Pancreatitis Worth acting on
  • A low platelet count Worth acting on
  • Anemia Worth acting on
  • Raised blood pressure Worth acting on
  • Hives Worth acting on
  • Liver problems Worth acting on
  • A higher chance of infection Worth acting on
  • Fever mentioned in 17.9% of FDA reports for 6-Mercaptopurine

Showing the 10 most notable of 18 label-listed effects — ranked by how unusual each one is across medicines generally, with serious effects weighted up.

From the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for 6-Mercaptopurine. Read the label on DailyMed › Where a percentage is shown, it is the share of 17,242 voluntary FDA FAERS reports for 6-Mercaptopurine that mention that effect — a reporting proportion, not an incidence rate and not evidence the drug caused it. Betony’s licensed record lists no adverse effects our clinical vocabulary could match, so there is no Betony side to compare — that is a limit of the record, not a statement that Betony has no side effects.

From our Q&A

Questions About Betony or 6-Mercaptopurine

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Betony or 6-Mercaptopurine, not necessarily both, but if one is close to what you were about to ask it will usually go further than a database entry can:

Not quite your question? Ask our pharmacists directly — it is free, there is no account required, and answers usually come back within 24 hours.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With 6-Mercaptopurine

This page covers Betony only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the 6-Mercaptopurine page lists 106 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Beer (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Wine (major) and Active Hexose Correlated Compound (ahcc) (moderate).

By severity: 4 major · 92 moderate · 10 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the 6-Mercaptopurine page

“6-Mercaptopurine (Purinethol) works by dialing down your immune system, whether for leukemia or inflammatory bowel disease, and that makes this a list to check with real care. The four major-rated entries come first.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the 6-Mercaptopurine interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 188 real supplement products containing Betony, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Betony. Even though Betony itself has no known interaction with 6-Mercaptopurine, 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 Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine 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 Betony
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication 6-Mercaptopurine
Steady interest

#1,454 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 Betony reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine records this page draws on were last updated June 22, 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 Betony

What is Betony?

  • Headaches and tension
  • Anxiety and nervous tension
  • Digestive upset
  • Sore throat and mouth rinse
  • Mild diarrhea

Betony (Stachys officinalis) is a traditional European herb long used for headaches, nervous tension, and digestive complaints. Modern scientific evidence supporting these uses is very limited, and most claims rest on tradition rather than well-designed human studies. Talk with your pharmacist or doctor before using it, and avoid it during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Stachys officinalis · Lamiaceae · Aerial parts (leaves, stems, and flowers) · Tea, tincture, dried herb, capsules

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

Betony: dosing

There is no standardized or officially established dose for betony. Traditional use typically involved a tea made from a small amount of the dried herb, but reliable dosing information from clinical studies is not available.If you decide to use a betony product, follow the directions on the product label and do not exceed the recommended amount.

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

Read the full Betony monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Mercaptopurine

What Is Mercaptopurine Used For?

Brand name: Purinethol

Mercaptopurine — available as a tablet and as an oral suspension — is used to treat acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), a type of blood cancer. It is given as part of a combination chemotherapy maintenance regimen, meaning it works alongside other cancer medicines to keep leukemia in remission.

Both the tablet form and the oral suspension form carry this indication for adult and pediatric patients. The oral suspension is particularly useful for patients who cannot swallow tablets.

See full Mercaptopurine drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Betony

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

0Major
172Moderate
0Minor
2,657No known interaction
172 Moderate 2,657 No interaction
Moderate

172 interactions

Showing 60 of 172 moderate interactions — see all 172 on the Betony page.

No interaction 2,657 drugs checked — show the list

We also checked Betony against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,657 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Betony list.

See the full Betony interactions page
See every supplement checked against 6-Mercaptopurine, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Betony References

The 2 references that drive our Betony 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. Foster S, Tyler VE. Tyler's Honest Herbal: A Sensible Guide to the Use of Herbs and Related Remedies. 3rd ed., Binghamton, NY: Haworth Herbal Press, 1993.
  2. The Review of Natural Products by Facts and Comparisons. St. Louis, MO: Wolters Kluwer Co., 1999.

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 Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Betony with 6-Mercaptopurine?
We do not list a known interaction between Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine. 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.
How was the Betony and 6-Mercaptopurine combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. 6-Mercaptopurine is filed under 3 classifications, and Betony has documented interactions with 1 drug class — none of 6-Mercaptopurine'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 Betony interact with any other medications?
Yes. Betony has 172 documented drug interactions in our database — 6-Mercaptopurine 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 6-Mercaptopurine interact with any supplements?
Yes. 6-Mercaptopurine has documented interactions with 106 supplements in our database — Betony is not one of them. The 6-Mercaptopurine interaction page linked on this page lists every one, ranked by severity.

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

Where next

Keep Exploring

Betony monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Mercaptopurine drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication 6-Mercaptopurine supplement interactions Every supplement checked against 6-Mercaptopurine, ranked by severity Supplement interaction checker Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z Every drug we’ve checked against herbs & supplements References The 2 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About 6-Mercaptopurine and Betony?

Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.

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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.