Drug & supplement interaction

Bitter Melon + Ertugliflozin

Ertugliflozin brand name: Steglatro.

Moderate Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated September 2026
The bottom line Moderate

Bitter Melon has a moderate interaction with Ertugliflozin. Taking bitter melon with antidiabetes drugs might increase the risk of hypoglycemia.

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

Bitter Melon and Ertugliflozin

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

Moderate

ANTIDIABETES DRUGS

Why this applies to Ertugliflozin

Ertugliflozin falls under ANTIDIABETES DRUGS — the group Bitter Melon interacts with.

Taking bitter melon with antidiabetes drugs might increase the risk of hypoglycemia.
Bitter melon can lower blood glucose levels and might have additive effects when used with antidiabetes drugs. This might increase the risk of hypoglycemia in some patients. Monitor blood glucose levels closely.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Probable Evidence B

Interaction 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..

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

Here's the simple version: bitter melon can nudge your blood sugar downward on its own, and ertugliflozin (Steglatro) is already working to lower it by flushing extra sugar out through your urine. Stack the two together and the effects can add up, which may push your blood sugar lower than you intended.

On its own, ertugliflozin rarely causes true lows, but adding bitter melon raises that chance. Watch for shakiness, sweating, dizziness, headache, or feeling suddenly hungry or confused. The evidence here is moderate and comes from lower-quality studies, so it isn't a sure thing, but it's worth taking seriously. Please don't start or stop anything on your own. Check with your pharmacist or doctor first, and keep an eye on your home glucose readings if you do use both.

Contact Dr. Brian directly if you have additional questions on this interaction
References
  1. Leatherdale B, Panesar RK, Singh G, et al. Improvement in glucose tolerance due to Momordica charantia. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1981;282:1823-4.
  2. Welihinda J, et al. Effect of Momordica charantia on the glucose tolerance in maturity onset diabetes. J Ethnopharmacol 1986;17:277-82. PubMed
  3. Srivastava Y, Venkatakrishna-Bhatt H, Verma Y, et al. Antidiabetic and adaptogenic properties of Momordica charantia extract: An experimental and clinical evaluation. Phytother Res 1993;7:285-9.
  4. Baldwa VS, Bhandari CM, Pangaria A, Goyal RK. Clinical trial in patients with diabetes mellitus of an insulin-like compound obtained from plant sources. Ups J Med Sci 1977;82:39-41. PubMed
  5. Aslam M, Stockley IH. Interaction between curry ingredient (karela) and drug (chlorpropamide). Lancet 1979:1:607. PubMed
  6. Ahmad N, Hassan MR, Halder H, Bennoor KS. Effect of Momordica charantia (Karolla) extracts on fasting and postprandial serum glucose levels in NIDDM patients (abstract). Bangladesh Med Res Counc Bull 1999;25:11-3.
  7. Yin RV, Lee NC, Hirpara H, Phung OJ. T. The effect of bitter melon (Mormordica charantia) in patients with diabetes mellitus: s systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutr Diabetes. 2014;4:e145.
  8. Rahman IU, Khan RU, Rahman KU, Bashir M. Lower hypoglycemic but higher antiatherogenic effects of bitter melon than glibenclamide in type 2 diabetic patients. Nutr J. 2015;14:13. PubMed
  9. Alam MA, Uddin R, Subhan N, Rahman MM, Jain P, Reza HM. Beneficial role of bitter melon supplementation in obesity and related complications in metabolic syndrome. J Lipids. 2015;2015:496169. PubMed
  10. Peter EL, Kasali FM, Deyno S, et al. Momordica charantia L. lowers elevated glycaemia in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients: Systematic review and meta-analysis. J Ethnopharmacol. 2019;231:311-24. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2018.10.033. PubMed
  11. Chattopadhyay K, Wang H, Kaur J, et al. Effectiveness and Safety of Ayurvedic Medicines in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Management: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Front Pharmacol. 2022;13:821810. Published 2022 Jun 8. PubMed

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

Bitter Melon Also Interacts With Other Medications

Bitter Melon has 281 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Ertugliflozin one above is one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Moderate 281 No known interaction 2,549 (incl. Ertugliflozin)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Bitter Melon

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

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Ertugliflozin

This page covers Bitter Melon only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Ertugliflozin page lists 256 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), African Wild Potato (moderate) and Agaricus Mushroom (moderate).

By severity: 2 major · 215 moderate · 39 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Ertugliflozin page

“Ertugliflozin (Steglatro) works by making your kidneys flush out extra sugar, and nearly all 256 supplements on this page pull on that same lever, so this is a list to approach carefully rather than casually. Most entries either add to the glucose-lowering effect and raise the risk of a low, or, like niacin, push blood sugar the other…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Ertugliflozin interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 736 real supplement products containing Bitter Melon, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Bitter Melon. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Ertugliflozin too, on top of Bitter Melon — 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 Bitter Melon and Ertugliflozin 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 Bitter Melon
Top 25%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Ertugliflozin
Steady interest

#2,008 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 Bitter Melon

What is Bitter Melon?

Bitter Melon
  • Blood sugar support
  • Diabetes
  • Digestive complaints
  • Antioxidant source
  • Skin conditions

Bitter melon is a tropical fruit eaten as food and used in traditional medicine, most often for blood sugar control. While some small studies hint it may modestly lower blood sugar, the evidence is limited and inconsistent, so it should not replace proven diabetes treatment. Talk with your pharmacist or doctor before using it, especially if you take diabetes medicines or are pregnant.

Read the full Bitter Melon monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Ertugliflozin

What Is Ertugliflozin Used For?

Brand name: Steglatro

Steglatro (ertugliflozin) is used as an add-on to diet and exercise to improve blood sugar (glucose) control in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Steglatro is not recommended for improving blood sugar control in people with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

See full Ertugliflozin drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Bitter Melon

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

0Major
281Moderate
0Minor
2,548No known interaction
281 Moderate 2,548 No interaction
Moderate

281 interactions

Showing 60 of 281 moderate interactions — see all 281 on the Bitter Melon page.

No interaction 2,548 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,548 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Bitter Melon list.

See the full Bitter Melon interactions page
See every supplement checked against Ertugliflozin, ranked by severity
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

Keep exploring
Bitter Melon monograph › Uses, safety, and every drug interaction in one place Ertugliflozin supplement interactions › Every supplement checked against Ertugliflozin, ranked by severity Ertugliflozin drug information › The full plain-English guide to this medication Supplement interaction checker › Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z › Every drug we've checked against herbs & supplements Ask a pharmacist › Free, personal answer from our licensed team
Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Bitter Melon and Ertugliflozin Together: Common Questions

Can you take Bitter Melon with Ertugliflozin?
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 Bitter Melon and Ertugliflozin 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 Ertugliflozin and Bitter Melon?

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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.