Drug & supplement interaction

Cranberry + Methotrexate

Methotrexate brand names: Rheumatrex, Otrexup, Rasuvo, Reditrex.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated July 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 13, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Cranberry and Methotrexate 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 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

Cranberry and Methotrexate

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 Methotrexate and Cranberry 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.

Cranberry safety at a glance

Cranberry overall Use caution Generally well tolerated as a food or supplement, but it is not a substitute for medical treatment of infections.
Pregnancy Likely Safe When consumed in amounts commonly found in the diet. There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of cranberry when used therapeuticall... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Likely Safe When consumed in amounts commonly found in the diet. There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of cranberry when used therapeuticall... 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 Methotrexate and Cranberry? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Methotrexate

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Methotrexate is filed under 6 classifications — including organic anion-transporting polypeptide substrates (oatp), organic anion transporter 3 (oat3) substrates, hepatotoxic drugs. Cranberry has documented interactions with 6 drug classes — the most serious being atorvastatin (lipitor) (moderate), cytochrome p450 3a4 (cyp3a4) substrates (moderate) and nifedipine (procardia) (moderate) — and none of Methotrexate’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

Cranberry Does Interact With Other Medications

Cranberry has 643 moderate, 69 minor known drug interactions in our database — Methotrexate isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Moderate 643 Minor 69 No known interaction 2,118 (incl. Methotrexate)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Cranberry

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

What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Cranberry and Methotrexate 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.

  • A low platelet count Worth acting on Additional detail

    Cranberry

    “Thrombocytopenia has been reported as an adverse event to cranberry juice.”

    Cranberry · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in thrombocytopenia.

    1 source cited
    1. 46459. Royer, D. J., George, J. N., and Terrell, D. R. Thrombocytopenia as an adverse effect of complementary and alternative medicines, herbal remedies, nutritional supplements, foods, and beverages. Eur J Haematol 2010;84(5):421-429. PubMed

    Methotrexate

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

  • Stomach upset / Diarrhea Additional detail

    Cranberry

    “In very large doses, for example 3-4 L per day of juice, cranberry can cause gastrointestinal upset and diarrhea, particularly in young children. There are reports of abdominal and gastrointestinal discomfort after taking cranberry tablets, extracts, and juice in clinical trials.”

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

    5 sources cited
    1. 46364. Garcia-Calatayud, S., Larreina Cordoba, J. J., and Lozano De La Torre MJ. [Severe cranberry juice poisoning]. An.Esp.Pediatr. 2002;56(1):72-73.
    2. 16720. McMurdo MET, Argo I, Phillips G, et al. Cranberry or trimethoprim for the prevention of recurrently urinary tract infections? A randomized controlled trial in older women. J Antimicrob Chemother 2009;63:389-95.
    3. 46379. Linsenmeyer, T. A., Harrison, B., Oakley, A., Kirshblum, S., Stock, J. A., and Millis, S. R. Evaluation of cranberry supplement for reduction of urinary tract infections in individuals with neurogenic bladders secondary to spinal cord injury. A prospecti
    4. 116190. Williams G, Stothart CI, Hahn D, Stephens JH, Craig JC, Hodson EM. Cranberries for preventing urinary tract infections. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2023;11(11):CD001321. PubMed
    5. 16415. Wing DA, Rumney PJ, Preslicka CW, Chung JH. Daily cranberry juice for the prevention of asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnancy: a randomized, controlled pilot study. J Urol 2008;180:1367-72. PubMed

    Methotrexate

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

  • Itching Additional detail

    Cranberry

    “Orally, skin redness and itching has been reported in one patient.”

    Cranberry · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in pruritus.

    1 source cited
    1. 46389. McMurdo, M. E., Bissett, L. Y., Price, R. J., Phillips, G., and Crombie, I. K. Does ingestion of cranberry juice reduce symptomatic urinary tract infections in older people in hospital? A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Age Ageing 2005;34(3):256- PubMed

    “Vulvovaginal candidiasis has been associated with ingestion of cranberry juice. Clinical research suggests that ingestion of cranberry juice may be associated with vaginal itching and vaginal dryness. One patient in clinical research stopped taking dried cranberry juice due to excessive urination, and an isolated case of nocturia following ingestion of cranberry tablets has been reported.”

    Cranberry · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in vaginal candidiasis.

    4 sources cited
    1. 46374. Patel, D. A., Gillespie, B., Sobel, J. D., Leaman, D., Nyirjesy, P., Weitz, M. V., and Foxman, B. Risk factors for recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis in women receiving maintenance antifungal therapy: results of a prospective cohort study. Am J Obstet.Gy PubMed
    2. 46471. Stapleton, A. E., Dziura, J., Hooton, T. M., Cox, M. E., Yarova-Yarovaya, Y., Chen, S., and Gupta, K. Recurrent urinary tract infection and urinary Escherichia coli in women ingesting cranberry juice daily: a randomized controlled trial. Mayo.Clin.Proc. PubMed
    3. 46437. Valentova, K., Stejskal, D., Bednar, P., Vostalova, J., Cihalik, C., Vecerova, R., Koukalova, D., Kolar, M., Reichenbach, R., Sknouril, L., Ulrichova, J., and Simanek, V. Biosafety, antioxidant status, and metabolites in urine after consumption of dried
    4. 16720. McMurdo MET, Argo I, Phillips G, et al. Cranberry or trimethoprim for the prevention of recurrently urinary tract infections? A randomized controlled trial in older women. J Antimicrob Chemother 2009;63:389-95.

    Methotrexate

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

  • Nausea / Vomiting reported in 5.9% of FDA reports for Methotrexate Additional detail

    Cranberry

    Recorded for Cranberry in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Stomach upset / Diarrhea above.

    Methotrexate

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

Reported for Cranberry but not commonly for Methotrexate: passing urine more often.

Effects for Methotrexate come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Cranberry come from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, quoted above. Where a percentage is shown, it is the share of 489,806 voluntary FDA FAERS reports for Methotrexate 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

Cranberry in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy And Lactation Likely Safe

When consumed in amounts commonly found in the diet. There is insufficient reliable information available about the safety of cranberry when used therapeutically during pregnancy or lactation; 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

Overlapping uses

What Methotrexate Is Prescribed For, and What Cranberry Has Been Studied For

These two come up together because they touch the same health topic — not because they do the same job. Methotrexate is a prescription medicine with approved uses on its FDA label. Cranberry is a supplement: what follows is what researchers have looked at it for, and how strong that evidence is.

Methotrexate is prescribed for: Methotrexate treats a wide range of serious conditions. In cancer care, it is used for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, osteosarcoma, breast cancer, head and neck cancer, and gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (a rare tumor related to pregnancy). It is also used to prevent and treat meningeal leukemia (cancer affecting the lining of the brain and spinal cord). Outside of cancer, methotrexate is prescribed for adults with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), children with polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (a form of childhood arthritis), and adults with severe psoriasis that hasn't responded well to other treatments.

Cranberry has been studied for:

  • Cancer studied, not established Cranberry has been studied for this. Natural Medicines rates the evidence: Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate Read what the research shows

    Cranberry for cancer

    Although there has been interest in using oral cranberry for cancer, there is insufficient reliable information about the clinical effects of cranberry for this condition.

Effectiveness ratings and the research summaries above are the verbatim record from the Natural Medicines database, which grades evidence from “Effective” down to “Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate”. A rating below the top of that scale means researchers have looked at it — not that it works, and never that it can stand in for a prescribed medicine. Do not stop or replace Methotrexate on your own; if you are taking Cranberry for the same health topic, tell your prescriber, especially if the medicine is being adjusted to a target.

From our Q&A

Questions About Cranberry or Methotrexate

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

This page covers Cranberry only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Methotrexate page lists 82 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

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

By severity: 7 major · 60 moderate · 15 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Methotrexate page

“The liver is where methotrexate and supplements clash most. Methotrexate (Rheumatrex, Otrexup, Rasuvo), used for rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, and certain cancers, can strain the liver on its own, and 38 of the 82 interacting ingredients on this list add liver risk of their own, alcohol included, which makes this a list to approach…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Methotrexate interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 5,249 real supplement products containing Cranberry, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Cranberry. Even though Cranberry itself has no known interaction with Methotrexate, 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 Cranberry and Methotrexate 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 Cranberry
Top 5%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Methotrexate
Top 5%

#49 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 Cranberry reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Cranberry and Methotrexate 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 Cranberry

What is Cranberry?

Cranberry
  • Urinary tract infection prevention
  • Bladder health
  • Antioxidant support
  • Source of vitamin C

Cranberry is best known for helping to prevent repeated urinary tract infections (UTIs) in some people, and the evidence here is moderate but mixed. It is not a reliable treatment for an active UTI, which usually needs antibiotics. For most people cranberry products are well tolerated, but check with a pharmacist before relying on them, especially if you have frequent infections.

Vaccinium macrocarpon · Ericaceae · Fruit (berry) and fruit juice · Capsules, tablets, softgels, powder, juice, dried berries, liquid extract

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

Cranberry: dosing

There is no single standardized dose of cranberry that is proven best. Studies have used a wide range of juices, powders, and extracts, and products differ a lot in how much active proanthocyanidin they contain.Because of this, the most practical advice is to follow the directions on the product label and not exceed them. Choose unsweetened options if you are watching sugar intake.

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

Read the full Cranberry monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Methotrexate

What Is Methotrexate Used For?

Brand names: Rheumatrex, Otrexup, Rasuvo, Reditrex

Methotrexate treats a wide range of serious conditions. In cancer care, it is used for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, osteosarcoma, breast cancer, head and neck cancer, and gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (a rare tumor related to pregnancy). It is also used to prevent and treat meningeal leukemia (cancer affecting the lining of the brain and spinal cord).

Outside of cancer, methotrexate is prescribed for adults with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), children with polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (a form of childhood arthritis), and adults with severe psoriasis that hasn't responded well to other treatments.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Methotrexate

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (489,806 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Rheumatoid arthritis 42,798 reports
Arthralgia 40,830 reports
Fatigue 33,049 reports
Nausea 28,999 reports
Joint swelling 25,026 reports
See full Methotrexate drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Cranberry

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

0Major
643Moderate
69Minor
2,117No known interaction
643 Moderate 69 Minor 2,117 No interaction
Moderate

643 interactions

Showing 60 of 643 moderate interactions — see all 643 on the Cranberry page.

Minor

69 interactions

Showing 60 of 69 minor interactions — see all 69 on the Cranberry page.

No interaction 2,117 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,117 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Cranberry list.

See the full Cranberry interactions page
See every supplement checked against Methotrexate, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Cranberry References

The 33 references that drive our Cranberry 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. Anon. Possible interaction between warfarin and cranberry juice. Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance 2003;29:8. PubMed
  2. Greenblatt DJ, von Moltke LL, Perloff ES, et al. Interaction of flurbiprofen with cranberry juice, grape juice, tea, and fluconazole: in vitro and clinical studies. Clin Pharmacol Ther 2006;79:125-33. PubMed
  3. Hodek P, Trefil P, Stiborova M. Flavonoids-potent and versatile biologically active compounds interacting with cytochromes P450. Chem Biol Interact 2002;139:1-21.. PubMed
  4. Grant P. Warfarin and cranberry juice: An interaction? J Heart Valve Dis 2004;13:25-6.
  5. Suvarna R, Pirmohamed M, Henderson L. Possible interaction between warfarin and cranberry juice. BMJ 2003;327:1454. PubMed
  6. Li Z, Seeram NP, Carpenter CL, et al. Cranberry does not affect prothrombin time in male subjects on warfarin. J Am Diet Assoc 2006;106:2057-61. PubMed
  7. Lilja JJ, Backman JT, Neuvonen PJ. Effects of daily ingestion of cranberry juice on the pharmacokinetics of warfarin, tizanidine, and midazolam - probes of CYP2C9, CYP1A2 and CYP3A4. Clin Pharmacol The 2007:81:833-9. PubMed
  8. Wing DA, Rumney PJ, Preslicka CW, Chung JH. Daily cranberry juice for the prevention of asymptomatic bacteriuria in pregnancy: a randomized, controlled pilot study. J Urol 2008;180:1367-72. PubMed
  9. Mohammed Abdul MI, Jiang X, Williams KM, et al. Pharmacodynamic interaction of warfarin with cranberry but not with garlic in healthy subjects. Br J Pharmacol 2008;154:1691-700. PubMed
  10. McMurdo MET, Argo I, Phillips G, et al. Cranberry or trimethoprim for the prevention of recurrently urinary tract infections? A randomized controlled trial in older women. J Antimicrob Chemother 2009;63:389-95.
  11. Mergenhagen KA, Sherman O. Elevated International Normalized Ratio after concurrent ingestion of cranberry sauce and warfarin. Am J Health-Syst Pharm 2008;65:2113-6. PubMed
  12. Ansell J, McDonough M, Zhao Y, et al. The absence of an interaction between warfarin and cranberry juice: a randomized, double-blind trial. J Clin Pharmacol 2009;49:824-30. PubMed
  13. Haber SL, Cauthon KA, Raney EC. Cranberry and warfarin interaction: a case report and review of the literature. Consult Pharm 2012;27:58-65. PubMed
  14. Hamann GL, Campbell JD, George CM. Warfarin-cranberry juice interaction. Ann Pharmacother 2011;45:e17. PubMed
  15. Roberts D, Flanagan P. Case report: Cranberry juice and warfarin. Home Healthc Nurse 2011;29:92-7.

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 Cranberry and Methotrexate Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Cranberry with Methotrexate?
We do not list a known interaction between Cranberry and Methotrexate. 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 Cranberry and Methotrexate have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to 6 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.
Are Cranberry and Methotrexate used for the same thing?
They overlap in purpose, which usually means the real question is whether you need both rather than whether they are safe together. This page lists the shared uses and how strong the evidence is for Cranberry in each. That is a conversation for your prescriber, especially if Methotrexate is being adjusted to a target.
How was the Cranberry and Methotrexate combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Methotrexate is filed under 6 classifications, and Cranberry has documented interactions with 6 drug classes — none of Methotrexate'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 Cranberry interact with any other medications?
Yes. Cranberry has 712 documented drug interactions in our database — Methotrexate 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 Methotrexate interact with any supplements?
Yes. Methotrexate has documented interactions with 82 supplements in our database — Cranberry is not one of them. The Methotrexate interaction page linked on this page lists every one, ranked by severity.

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

Where next

Keep Exploring

Cranberry monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Methotrexate drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Methotrexate supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Methotrexate, ranked by severity Supplement interaction checker Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z Every drug we’ve checked against herbs & supplements References The 33 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Methotrexate and Cranberry?

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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.