Drug & supplement interaction

Chromium + Nabumetone

Nabumetone brand names: Relafen, Nabumetone.

Minor Interaction
The bottom line Minor

Chromium has a minor interaction with Nabumetone. NSAIDs might increase chromium levels in the body.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityMinor
LikelihoodPossible
EvidenceD
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Chromium and Nabumetone

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

Minor

NONSTEROIDAL ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DRUGS (NSAIDs)

Why this applies to Nabumetone

Nabumetone falls under NONSTEROIDAL ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DRUGS (NSAIDs) — the group Chromium interacts with.

NSAIDs might increase chromium levels in the body.
Drugs that are prostaglandin inhibitors, such as NSAIDs, seem to increase chromium absorption and retention.
Severity Minor Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Interaction 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.

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

Here's the thing to know about pairing chromium with nabumetone: this one goes the other direction from what most people expect. It isn't that nabumetone changes in your body. Instead, NSAIDs like nabumetone block prostaglandins, and that may help your body absorb and hold onto a bit more chromium. So the supplement level may tick up slightly, not the medication.

I'll be honest with you, this is rated minor and it's only theoretical, based on how these drugs work rather than real patient reports. For most folks it won't cause any noticeable problem. If you take chromium for blood sugar, just keep an eye out for lower readings and let your pharmacist or doctor know what you're taking.

References
  1. Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine. Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Arsenic, Boron, Chromium, Copper, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Nickel, Silicon, Vanadium, and Zinc. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2002.

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

Chromium Also Interacts With Other Medications

Chromium has 89 moderate, 88 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Nabumetone one above is one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Chromium

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

From our Q&A

Questions About Chromium or Nabumetone

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

This page covers Chromium only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Nabumetone page lists 52 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Asarabacca (major), Beer (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major) and Wine (major).

By severity: 5 major · 35 moderate · 12 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Nabumetone page

“Five of the 52 supplement and herbal ingredients on file for nabumetone (Relafen) rate major, and those five are where real vigilance belongs. Nabumetone is an NSAID taken for arthritis and joint pain, and NSAIDs already stress the stomach and the kidneys, so the worst pairings hit exactly those weak spots.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Nabumetone interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 16,728 real supplement products containing Chromium, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Chromium. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Nabumetone too, on top of Chromium — 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 Chromium and Nabumetone 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 Chromium
Top 5%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Nabumetone
Steady interest

#1,776 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 Chromium

What is Chromium?

Chromium
  • Blood sugar support in type 2 diabetes
  • Weight loss and appetite control
  • Insulin sensitivity
  • Cholesterol and lipid support
  • General nutritional supplement

Chromium is an essential trace mineral involved in how the body handles sugar and fat. Some studies suggest it may modestly help blood sugar control in certain people with type 2 diabetes, but results are mixed and the effect on weight loss is small and uncertain. For most healthy people who eat a varied diet, supplements are not needed; check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting.

Read the full Chromium monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Nabumetone

What Is Nabumetone Used For?

Brand names: Relafen, Nabumetone

Nabumetone tablets are used to relieve the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. That means easing things like joint pain and inflammation.

All of the supported products, including Relafen DS and the generic nabumetone tablets, list these same two uses.

See full Nabumetone drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Chromium

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

0Major
89Moderate
88Minor
2,652No known interaction
Moderate

89 interactions

Showing 60 of 89 moderate interactions — see all 89 on the Chromium page.

Minor

88 interactions

Showing 60 of 88 minor interactions — see all 88 on the Chromium page.

No interaction 2,652 drugs checked — show the list
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

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Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Chromium and Nabumetone Together: Common Questions

Can you take Chromium with Nabumetone?
There is only a minor interaction, which is usually not serious. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
How serious is the Chromium and Nabumetone interaction?
We rate it Minor. This interaction is generally not clinically significant, but it remains worth noting and discussing with your pharmacist.

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

Still Have a Question About Nabumetone and Chromium?

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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.