Drug & supplement interaction

Boneset + Penicillamine

Penicillamine brand names: Cuprimine, Depen Titratable.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Boneset and Penicillamine 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 Penicillamine states a food rule worth keeping to, and 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

Boneset and Penicillamine

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 Penicillamine and Boneset 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.

Boneset safety at a glance

Boneset overall Use caution Limited safety data and possible liver-toxic alkaloids mean it should be used carefully and short-term, if at all.
Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe When used orally. Hepatotoxic PAs are common in this genus of plants; however, the alkaloids in boneset have not been adequately characterized to determine thei... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Possibly Unsafe When used orally. Hepatotoxic PAs are common in this genus of plants; however, the alkaloids in boneset have not been adequately characterized to determine thei... Read the full breastfeeding detail

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 Penicillamine and Boneset? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Penicillamine

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Penicillamine is filed under 3 classifications — including nephrotoxic drugs, oral drugs. Boneset has documented interactions with 1 drug class — the most serious being cytochrome p450 3a4 (cyp3a4) inducers (moderate) — and none of Penicillamine’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

Boneset Does Interact With Other Medications

Boneset has 87 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Penicillamine 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 Boneset

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

What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Boneset and Penicillamine May Share Several of the Same Side Effects

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.

  • Liver problems Worth acting on Additional detail

    Boneset

    “Orally, boneset is reported to cause nausea and severe diarrhea and vomiting. Additionally, other plants in the Eupatorium genus contain the hepatotoxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs). However, the alkaloids in boneset have not been adequately characterized to determine their toxic potential. Liver toxicity and liver damage may be possible in high doses.”

    Boneset · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in diarrhea.

    2 sources cited
    1. 12842. Roeder E. Medicinal plants in Europe containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Pharmazie 1995;50:83-98.
    2. 102557. Colegate SM, Upton R, Gardner DR, Panter KE, Betz JM. Potentially toxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids in Eupatorium perfoliatum and three related species. Implications for herbal use as boneset. Phytochem Anal. 2018;29(6):613-626.

    Penicillamine

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

  • Diarrhea / Nausea / Vomiting reported in 10.5% of FDA reports for Penicillamine Additional detail

    Boneset

    “Orally, boneset has been reported to cause nausea and severe diarrhea and vomiting.”

    Boneset · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in diarrhea.

    1 source cited
    1. 12842. Roeder E. Medicinal plants in Europe containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Pharmazie 1995;50:83-98.

    Penicillamine

    Listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Penicillamine, and in voluntary FDA adverse-event reports. Read the label on DailyMed ›

Effects for Penicillamine come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Boneset come from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, quoted above. Where a percentage is shown, it is the share of 917 voluntary FDA FAERS reports for Penicillamine that mention that effect — a reporting proportion, not an incidence rate and not evidence the drug caused it. Wording is matched across sources by our own clinical vocabulary, so treat this as a prompt to pay attention, not a diagnosis.

Special populations

Boneset in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy And Lactation Possibly Unsafe

When used orally. Hepatotoxic PAs are common in this genus of plants; however, the alkaloids in boneset have not been adequately characterized to determine their toxic potential. Hepatotoxic PAs might be teratogenic; avoid using.

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

How to take them

Some Penicillamine Products Have a Food Rule — Boneset Should Not Break It

At least one FDA label for a product containing Penicillamine says to take it on an empty stomach. Most supplements — Boneset included — are taken with a meal, so the easy mistake is swallowing both together at breakfast. Where that rule applies, keep Penicillamine on its own and move Boneset to a meal later in the day.

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

DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION In all patients receiving penicillamine, it is important that CUPRIMINE be given on an empty stomach, at least one hour before meals or two hours after meals, and at least one hour apart from any other drug, food, or milk.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Penicillamine — where that label names a specific product, the instruction is that product's. Read the label on DailyMed ›

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 Penicillamine

This page covers Boneset only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Penicillamine page lists 26 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Asarabacca (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Aristolochia (moderate) and Coffee Charcoal (moderate).

By severity: 3 major · 13 moderate · 10 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Penicillamine page

“People take penicillamine (Cuprimine, Depen) for demanding conditions, Wilson's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, cystinuria, and its 26 supplement interactions are not a list to skim, three of them rated major. Seventeen ingredients can keep an oral dose from being fully absorbed, activated charcoal chief among them, and six more can str…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Penicillamine interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 118 real supplement products containing Boneset, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Boneset. Even though Boneset itself has no known interaction with Penicillamine, 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 Boneset and Penicillamine 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 Boneset
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Penicillamine
Steady interest

#2,752 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 Boneset reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Boneset and Penicillamine 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 Boneset

What is Boneset?

  • Colds and flu
  • Fever
  • Body aches
  • Congestion
  • Immune support

Boneset is a traditional North American herb long used in teas for fevers, colds, and flu, but modern human studies are very limited. It contains compounds (pyrrolizidine alkaloids) that may harm the liver, so it should be used cautiously and avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Eupatorium perfoliatum · Asteraceae · Dried above-ground parts (leaves and flowering tops) · Tea, tincture, capsules, dried herb

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

Boneset: dosing

There is no well-established, standardized dose for boneset. Traditional preparations were usually made as a hot tea from the dried herb, but reliable modern dosing guidelines are not available.If you choose to use a commercial product, follow the directions on the label and do not exceed them.

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

Read the full Boneset monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Penicillamine

What Is Penicillamine Used For?

Brand names: Cuprimine, Depen Titratable

Penicillamine is used for three distinct conditions. It treats Wilson's disease — a rare genetic disorder in which the body accumulates dangerous levels of copper — by binding to the excess copper and helping the body remove it. It also treats cystinuria, a condition where the amino acid cystine builds up and forms painful kidney stones, by converting cystine into a more soluble form that the body can excrete more easily.

For patients with severe, active rheumatoid arthritis who have not responded adequately to conventional therapies, penicillamine (available as Aagylur, Cuprimine, Depen, and other products) may be used to help suppress disease activity and reduce joint pain, tenderness, and swelling.

See full Penicillamine drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Boneset

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

0Major
87Moderate
0Minor
2,742No known interaction
Moderate

87 interactions

Showing 60 of 87 moderate interactions — see all 87 on the Boneset page.

No interaction 2,742 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Boneset References

The 5 references that drive our Boneset 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. Chojkier M. Hepatic sinusoidal-obstruction syndrome: toxicity of pyrrolizidine alkaloids. J Hepatol 2003;39:437-46. PubMed
  2. Roeder E. Medicinal plants in Europe containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Pharmazie 1995;50:83-98.
  3. Wang YP, Yan J, Fu PP, Chou MW. Human liver microsomal reduction of pyrrolizidine alkaloid N-oxides to form the corresponding carcinogenic parent alkaloid. Toxicol Lett 2005;155:411-20. PubMed
  4. Gassinger, C. A., Wunstel, G., and Netter, P. [A controlled clinical trial for testing the efficacy of the homeopathic drug eupatorium perfoliatum D2 inthe treatment of common cold (author's transl)]. Arzneimittelforschung. 1981;31(4):732-736.
  5. Colegate SM, Upton R, Gardner DR, Panter KE, Betz JM. Potentially toxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids in Eupatorium perfoliatum and three related species. Implications for herbal use as boneset. Phytochem Anal. 2018;29(6):613-626.

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 Boneset and Penicillamine Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Boneset with Penicillamine?
We do not list a known interaction between Boneset and Penicillamine. 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 Boneset and Penicillamine have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to 4 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.
Should I take Boneset and Penicillamine at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Penicillamine says to take it on an empty stomach, and supplements are usually taken with a meal — so taking them together at breakfast is the easy mistake. Where that applies, keep Penicillamine on its own and move Boneset to a meal later in the day. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient, so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Boneset and Penicillamine combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Penicillamine is filed under 3 classifications, and Boneset has documented interactions with 1 drug class — none of Penicillamine'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 Boneset interact with any other medications?
Yes. Boneset has 87 documented drug interactions in our database — Penicillamine 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 Penicillamine interact with any supplements?
Yes. Penicillamine has documented interactions with 26 supplements in our database — Boneset is not one of them. The Penicillamine 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 Penicillamine and Boneset?

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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.