Drug & supplement interaction

Greater Celandine + Encainide

Encainide brand name: Enkaid.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Greater Celandine has a moderate interaction with Encainide. Research in vitro shows that chelidonine, a constituent of greater celandine, inhibits cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) enzyme activity.

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

Greater Celandine and Encainide

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

Moderate

CYTOCHROME P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) SUBSTRATES

Why this applies to Encainide

Encainide falls under CYTOCHROME P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) SUBSTRATES — the group Greater Celandine interacts with.

Research in vitro shows that chelidonine, a constituent of greater celandine, inhibits cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) enzyme activity. Theoretically, greater celandine might increase levels of drugs metabolized by CYP2D6.
Some drugs metabolized by CYP2D6 include amitriptyline (Elavil), clozapine (Clozaril), codeine, desipramine (Norpramin), donepezil (Aricept), fentanyl (Duragesic), flecainide (Tambocor), fluoxetine (Prozac), meperidine (Demerol), methadone (Dolophine), metoprolol (Lopressor, Toprol XL), olanzapine (Zyprexa), ondansetron (Zofran), tramadol (Ultram), trazodone (Desyrel), and many others.
Severity Moderate 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 gist for encainide, an older heart rhythm medicine. Your body relies on a liver enzyme called CYP2D6 to clear it. Greater celandine contains an alkaloid (chelidonine) that, in lab dish studies, can slow that enzyme down. If the enzyme works slower, encainide and its active byproducts could build up higher than expected.

Why that matters: encainide is an antiarrhythmic, so too much can actually worsen heart rhythm problems, cause dizziness, or affect your heartbeat. This concern is only theoretical right now, based on test-tube data, not real patients. Even so, I'd steer clear of greater celandine here, partly because it can also harm the liver. Please check with your pharmacist or doctor before mixing the two.

References
  1. Liu Y, Cui T, Peng Y, Ji M, Zheng J. Mechanism-based inactivation of cytochrome P450 2D6 by chelidonine. J Biochem Mol Toxicol. 2019;33(2):e22251. 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

Greater Celandine Also Interacts With Other Medications

Greater Celandine has 624 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Encainide 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 Greater Celandine

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

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Encainide

This page covers Greater Celandine only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Encainide page lists 77 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), 1,3-dmaa (moderate), Acacia Rigidula (moderate), Active Hexose Correlated Compound (ahcc) (moderate) and Ayahuasca (moderate).

By severity: 1 major · 56 moderate · 20 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Encainide page

“Encainide (Enkaid) treats serious irregular heartbeats, and with a rhythm drug even modest shifts in its blood level matter, so I would treat this page with genuine care before adding a supplement. Most entries share one mechanism, slowing CYP2D6, the liver enzyme that clears encainide, which risks letting the drug climb higher than in…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Encainide interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 11 real supplement products containing Greater Celandine, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Greater Celandine. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Encainide too, on top of Greater Celandine — 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 Greater Celandine and Encainide 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 Greater Celandine
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Encainide
Top half

#1,406 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 Greater Celandine

What is Greater Celandine?

Greater Celandine
  • Digestive and gallbladder complaints
  • Stomach cramps and bloating
  • Topical use for warts and skin growths
  • Liver and gallbladder 'cleansing'
  • Mild pain relief

Greater celandine is a traditional herb most often promoted for digestive and gallbladder complaints, but solid human evidence for any use is lacking. More importantly, it has been linked to serious and sometimes severe liver injury, so most experts advise against taking it by mouth. If you are considering it, talk with your pharmacist or doctor first.

Read the full Greater Celandine monograph & all interactions
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Greater Celandine

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

0Major
624Moderate
0Minor
2,205No known interaction
Moderate

624 interactions

Showing 60 of 624 moderate interactions — see all 624 on the Greater Celandine page.

No interaction 2,205 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 Greater Celandine and Encainide Together: Common Questions

Can you take Greater Celandine with Encainide?
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 Greater Celandine and Encainide 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 Encainide and Greater Celandine?

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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.