Drug & supplement interaction

Brown Rice + Mesalamine

Mesalamine brand names: Pentasa, Asacol, Canasa, Rowasa, Lialda, and others.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Brown Rice and Mesalamine 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 Mesalamine states a food rule worth keeping to.

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Interaction report

Brown Rice and Mesalamine

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 Mesalamine and Brown Rice 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.

Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Brown Rice at all — not against Mesalamine, and not against any other medication we track. This verdict therefore rests on the absence of any recorded data, not on research that looked at this combination and found nothing. We cannot rule an interaction out.

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.

Brown Rice safety at a glance

Brown Rice overall Generally safe Brown rice is a common food that is safe for most people when eaten as part of a varied diet.
Pregnancy Likely Safe When used orally in amounts commonly found in foods. There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of brown rice when used in medicinal... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Likely Safe When used orally in amounts commonly found in foods. There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of brown rice when used in medicinal... 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 Mesalamine and Brown Rice? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
What to actually watch for

What Mesalamine’s Own FDA Label Lists

This is not an interaction — none of it involves Brown Rice. These are the most notable effects listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of Mesalamine’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. 6 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Kidney stones Worth acting on
  • Kidney problems Worth acting on
  • Anemia Worth acting on
  • Liver problems Worth acting on
  • A higher chance of infection Worth acting on
  • An allergic reaction Worth acting on
  • Sun sensitivity
  • Bloating or gas
  • Stomach pain
  • Diarrhea

Showing the 10 most notable of 12 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 Mesalamine. Read the label on DailyMed › Brown Rice’s licensed record lists no adverse effects our clinical vocabulary could match, so there is no Brown Rice side to compare — that is a limit of the record, not a statement that Brown Rice has no side effects.

Special populations

Brown Rice in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy And Lactation Likely Safe

When used orally in amounts commonly found in foods. There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of brown rice when used in medicinal amounts during pregnancy or lactation.

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 Mesalamine Products Have a Food Rule — Brown Rice Should Not Break It

At least one FDA label for a product containing Mesalamine says to take it with food. If you take Brown Rice on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate — and take Mesalamine 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 Mesalamine 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.

( 2 ) Administer mesalamine delayed-release tablets with food.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Mesalamine — 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.

From our Q&A

Questions About Brown Rice or Mesalamine

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Brown Rice or Mesalamine, 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 Mesalamine

This page covers Brown Rice only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Mesalamine page lists 17 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Coffee Charcoal (moderate), European Mandrake (moderate), Glucomannan (moderate) and Guar Gum (moderate).

By severity: 1 major · 7 moderate · 9 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Mesalamine page

“Activated charcoal is the one entry here I would treat as a genuine problem for anyone taking mesalamine (Asacol, Lialda, Pentasa, and others). It is the lone major-rated interaction among the 17 on file, because charcoal soaks up drugs in the gut and can pull mesalamine out of the picture before it does its job.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Mesalamine interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 45 real supplement products containing Brown Rice, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Brown Rice. Even though Brown Rice itself has no known interaction with Mesalamine, 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 Brown Rice and Mesalamine 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 Brown Rice
Steady interest

#1,088 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Mesalamine
Top 25%

#687 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 Brown Rice reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Brown Rice and Mesalamine 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 Brown Rice

What is Brown Rice?

  • General nutrition and fiber intake
  • Heart health support
  • Blood sugar management
  • Weight management
  • Digestive health

Brown rice is a whole grain that keeps its fiber-rich bran and nutrient-packed germ, making it more nutritious than white rice. As part of a balanced diet, it may support heart health, digestion, and steadier blood sugar, but it is a food rather than a treatment for any disease. It is safe for most people; the main concern is its natural arsenic content, so variety in your grains is wise.

Oryza sativa · Poaceae · Whole grain (bran, germ, and endosperm) · Whole cooked grain, flour, rice bran, rice bran oil, brown rice protein powder, capsules

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

Brown Rice: dosing

There is no medical "dose" for brown rice because it is a food. A standard serving is about a half to one cup of cooked rice, eaten as part of meals. Dietary guidelines suggest making at least half of your grains whole grains, and brown rice can count toward that goal.For brown rice supplements such as protein powder or rice bran oil, follow the directions on the product label.

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

Read the full Brown Rice monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Mesalamine

What Is Mesalamine Used For?

Brand names: Pentasa, Asacol, Canasa, Rowasa, Lialda, Delzicol

Mesalamine is used to treat mildly to moderately active ulcerative colitis — a condition where the lining of the large intestine becomes inflamed and ulcerated. Depending on the product and formulation, it can be used to bring the disease under control (induction of remission) and/or to keep it from coming back (maintenance of remission).

Different products target different parts of the lower digestive tract. Oral forms (tablets and capsules) treat the colon more broadly. Rectal forms — including enemas (ROWASA, sfROWASA, mesalamine rectal suspension) — are used for distal ulcerative colitis, proctosigmoiditis, or proctitis (inflammation limited to the lower end of the colon or rectum). Rectal suppositories (CANASA, mesalamine rectal suppositories) are specifically for ulcerative proctitis (inflammation of the rectum only).

See full Mesalamine drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Brown Rice

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

0Major
0Moderate
0Minor
2,829No known interaction
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Brown Rice References

The 1 references that drive our Brown Rice 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. FDA, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Office of Premarket Approval, EAFUS: A food additive database. Website: vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/eafus.html (Accessed 23 February 2006).

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 Brown Rice and Mesalamine Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Brown Rice with Mesalamine?
We do not list a known interaction between Brown Rice and Mesalamine. 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 Brown Rice and Mesalamine at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Mesalamine says to take it with food. If you take Brown Rice on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate and take Mesalamine with a meal where the label says to. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient — two Mesalamine products can differ — so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
Does Mesalamine interact with any supplements?
Yes. Mesalamine has documented interactions with 17 supplements in our database — Brown Rice is not one of them. The Mesalamine 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 Mesalamine and Brown Rice?

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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.