Drug & supplement interaction

Birch + Glipizide, Metformin

Glipizide, Metformin brand name: Metaglip.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Birch and Glipizide, Metformin 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 Glipizide, Metformin states a food rule worth keeping to.

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Interaction report

Birch and Glipizide, Metformin

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 Glipizide, Metformin and Birch 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.

Birch safety at a glance

Birch overall Use caution Generally well tolerated in food-like amounts, but allergy and quality concerns warrant caution.
Pregnancy Avoid Not enough safety data, so birch supplements are best avoided during pregnancy.
Breastfeeding Avoid Safety has not been established, so it is best avoided while breastfeeding.

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

Still wondering about combining Glipizide, Metformin and Birch? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Glipizide, Metformin

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Glipizide, Metformin is filed under 7 classifications — including organic cation transporter 2 (oct2) substrates, antidiabetes drugs, cytochrome p450 2c9 (cyp2c9) substrates. Birch has documented interactions with 1 drug class — the most serious being diuretic drugs (minor) — and none of Glipizide, Metformin’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

Birch Does Interact With Other Medications

Birch has 75 minor known drug interactions in our database — Glipizide, Metformin 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 Birch

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

What to actually watch for

What Birch Itself Has Been Linked To

This is not an interaction — nothing below involves Glipizide, Metformin. It is the side-effect record for Birch on its own, from the licensed Natural Medicines monograph. If something new turns up after you add Birch, this list is the first place to look. One entry is worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • An allergic reaction Worth acting on Additional detail

    “Birch and birch pollen can cause allergic reactions. Treatment of birch pollen allergy can involve immunotherapy with birch pollen extract given sublingually and by the oral vestibular route.”

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

    1 source cited
    1. 97762. Allam JP, Wuestenberg E, Wolf H, et al. Immunologic response and safety in birch pollen sublingual versus oral vestibule immunotherapy: a pilot study. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2014;133(6):1757-9.e3. PubMed
  • A skin rash Additional detail

    “Topically, a case of allergic contact dermatitis has been reported for a 51-year-old male who had been applying a cream containing 5% birch bark extract for 4 months prior to the reaction. The constituent betulin was considered to be the most likely cause. Crushed birch leaves and fresh birch sap may also cause allergic contact dermatitis.”

    Birch · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in dermatitis.

    2 sources cited
    1. 97763. Meyer-Hoffert U, Brasch J. Allergic contact dermatitis caused by betulin-containing triterpene extract from the outer bark of birch (Betula alba). Contact Dermatitis. 2013;68(6):382-3.
    2. 35666. Lahti, A. and Hannuksela, M. Immediate contact allergy to birch leaves and sap. Contact Dermatitis 1980;6(7):464-465. PubMed

Everything above comes from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record for Birch — expand a row for the licensed statement it rests on. We read the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of Glipizide, Metformin’s FDA label too, and the two lists don’t meaningfully overlap — which is why no Glipizide, Metformin column appears here.

How to take them

Some Glipizide, Metformin Products Have a Food Rule — Birch Should Not Break It

At least one FDA label for a product containing Glipizide, Metformin says to take it with food. If you take Birch on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate — and take Glipizide, Metformin with a meal where the label says to.

This may not be true of your version. Food instructions belong to the product, not the ingredient: two Glipizide, Metformin 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.

Glipizide and Metformin Hydrochloride Tablets in Patients with Inadequate Glycemic Control on Diet and Exercise Alone For patients with type 2 diabetes whose hyperglycemia cannot be satisfactorily managed with diet and exercise alone, the recommended starting dose of glipizide and metformin hydrochloride tablets are 2.5 mg/250 mg once a day with a meal.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Glipizide, Metformin — where that label names a specific product, the instruction is that product's.

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 Glipizide, Metformin

This page covers Birch only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Glipizide, Metformin page lists 307 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Acai (moderate), Adrafinil (moderate) and African Wild Potato (moderate).

By severity: 2 major · 257 moderate · 48 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Glipizide, Metformin page

“Glipizide and metformin (Metaglip) already work hard to pull blood sugar down, which is exactly why this list of 307 ingredients deserves genuine vigilance rather than a shrug. Most of them, 239, can lower glucose on their own, and stacked on this pill the combined effect can tip into true hypoglycemia.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Glipizide, Metformin interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 116 real supplement products containing Birch, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Birch. Even though Birch itself has no known interaction with Glipizide, Metformin, 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 Birch and Glipizide, Metformin 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 Birch
Top 25%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Glipizide, Metformin
Steady interest

#1,627 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 Birch reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Birch and Glipizide, Metformin 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 Birch

What is Birch?

  • Urinary tract and 'flushing' support
  • Joint pain and arthritis
  • Mild fluid retention (diuretic)
  • Skin conditions (topical)
  • General detox or 'cleansing' tonics

Birch is a tree whose leaves, bark, and sap are used in traditional remedies, most often as a mild diuretic or for joint and urinary complaints. Solid human evidence is limited, and birch is a well-known source of pollen and contact allergies, so caution is important. Talk to a pharmacist or doctor before using birch products, especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or have allergies.

Betula pendula · Betulaceae · Leaves, bark, sap, and essential oil (often distilled from bark or twigs) · Tea, capsules, tinctures, birch sap (water), topical essential oil, and birch tar preparations

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

Birch: dosing

There is no well-established standardized dose for birch. Traditional preparations vary widely, and the strength of teas, tinctures, capsules, and birch water differs by product.If you choose to use a birch product, the safest approach is to follow the directions on the product label and not exceed the recommended amount.

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

Read the full Birch monograph & all interactions
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Birch

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

0Major
0Moderate
75Minor
2,754No known interaction
Minor

75 interactions

Showing 60 of 75 minor interactions — see all 75 on the Birch page.

No interaction 2,754 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Birch References

The 4 references that drive our Birch 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. Robbers JE, Tyler VE. Tyler's Herbs of Choice: The Therapeutic Use of Phytomedicinals. New York, NY: The Haworth Herbal Press, 1999.
  2. Lahti, A. and Hannuksela, M. Immediate contact allergy to birch leaves and sap. Contact Dermatitis 1980;6(7):464-465. PubMed
  3. Allam JP, Wuestenberg E, Wolf H, et al. Immunologic response and safety in birch pollen sublingual versus oral vestibule immunotherapy: a pilot study. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2014;133(6):1757-9.e3. PubMed
  4. Meyer-Hoffert U, Brasch J. Allergic contact dermatitis caused by betulin-containing triterpene extract from the outer bark of birch (Betula alba). Contact Dermatitis. 2013;68(6):382-3.

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 Birch and Glipizide, Metformin Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Birch with Glipizide, Metformin?
We do not list a known interaction between Birch and Glipizide, Metformin. 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.
Should I take Birch and Glipizide, Metformin at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Glipizide, Metformin says to take it with food. If you take Birch on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate and take Glipizide, Metformin with a meal where the label says to. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient — two Glipizide, Metformin products can differ — so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Birch and Glipizide, Metformin combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Glipizide, Metformin is filed under 7 classifications, and Birch has documented interactions with 1 drug class — none of Glipizide, Metformin'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 Birch interact with any other medications?
Yes. Birch has 75 documented drug interactions in our database — Glipizide, Metformin 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 Glipizide, Metformin interact with any supplements?
Yes. Glipizide, Metformin has documented interactions with 307 supplements in our database — Birch is not one of them. The Glipizide, Metformin 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 Glipizide, Metformin and Birch?

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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.