Drug & supplement interaction

Japanese Apricot + Phenylephrine

Phenylephrine brand names: Gilchew, AH Chew D, Gilchew IR, Sudafed PE, Biorphen.

No Known Interaction

Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS · Updated July 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 13, 2026

The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine 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.

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Interaction report

Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine

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 Phenylephrine and Japanese Apricot 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.

Japanese Apricot safety at a glance

Japanese Apricot overall Use caution Generally considered safe as a food, but concentrated supplement evidence is limited and quality varies.

Pregnancy Use caution Food amounts are likely fine, but concentrated extracts have not been well studied; use caution and ask your doctor.

Breastfeeding Use caution Little safety data exists for supplement-strength products, so caution is advised.

Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Phenylephrine and Japanese Apricot? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›

How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Phenylephrine

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Phenylephrine is filed under 5 classifications — including alpha-adrenergic agonists, stimulant drugs, serotonergic drugs. Japanese Apricot has documented interactions with 2 drug classes — the most serious being anticoagulant/antiplatelet drugs (moderate) and antidiabetes drugs (moderate) — and none of Phenylephrine’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

Japanese Apricot Does Interact With Other Medications

Japanese Apricot has 208 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Phenylephrine isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Moderate 208 No known interaction 2,622 (incl. Phenylephrine)

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Japanese Apricot

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

What to actually watch for

What Japanese Apricot Itself Has Been Linked To

This is not an interaction — nothing below involves Phenylephrine. It is the side-effect record for Japanese Apricot on its own, from the licensed Natural Medicines monograph. If something new turns up after you add Japanese Apricot, this list is the first place to look.

Constipation Additional detail
“Orally, Japanese apricot dried fruit extract seems to be well tolerated. Side effects reported in clinical research include gastric intolerance. Diluted Japanese apricot juice concentrate may cause constipation. Allergies to Japanese apricot are rare. The raw fruit of Japanese apricot is thought to be toxic due to the cyanogenic glycosides prunasin and amygdalin.”

Japanese Apricot · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in allergic rhinitis (hay fever).
4 sources cited

100027. Beretta A, Accinni R, Dellanoce C, Tonini A, Cardot JM, Bussiére A. Efficacy of a standardized extract of Prunus mume in liver protection and redox homeostasis: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Phytother Res. 2016;30(6):949-55.

100029. Nakajima S, Fujita K, Inoue Y, Nishio M, Seto Y. Effect of the folk remedy, Bainiku-ekisu, a concentrate of Prunus mume juice, on Helicobacter pylori infection in humans. Helicobacter. 2006;11(6):589-91.

100028. Iijima S, Ito M, Makabe K, Murakami Y, Yokooji T, Matsuo H. Case of food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis due to Japanese apricot and peach: Detection of causative antigens. J Dermatol. 2015;42(9):916-7. PubMed

13198. Chuda Y, Ono H, Ohnishi-Kameyama M, et al. Mumefural, citric acid derivative improving blood fluidity from fruit-juice concentrate of Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Sieb. et Zucc).J Agric Food Chem 1999;47:828-31. .
“Orally, Japanese apricot dried fruit extract 300 mg daily has been reported to cause gastric intolerance in one patient in one clinical study. In other clinical research, dilute Japanese apricot juice concentrate has been reported to cause constipation in one patient.”

Japanese Apricot · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in constipation.
2 sources cited

100027. Beretta A, Accinni R, Dellanoce C, Tonini A, Cardot JM, Bussiére A. Efficacy of a standardized extract of Prunus mume in liver protection and redox homeostasis: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Phytother Res. 2016;30(6):949-55.

100029. Nakajima S, Fujita K, Inoue Y, Nishio M, Seto Y. Effect of the folk remedy, Bainiku-ekisu, a concentrate of Prunus mume juice, on Helicobacter pylori infection in humans. Helicobacter. 2006;11(6):589-91.

Everything above comes from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record for Japanese Apricot — expand a row for the licensed statement it rests on. We read the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of Phenylephrine’s FDA label too, and the two lists don’t meaningfully overlap — which is why no Phenylephrine column appears here.

From our Q&A

Questions About Japanese Apricot or Phenylephrine

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

This page covers Japanese Apricot only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Phenylephrine page lists 81 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Ephedra (major), Lithium (major), Peyote (major) and Rauvolfia Vomitoria (major).

By severity: 6 major · 60 moderate · 15 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Phenylephrine page

“If you take phenylephrine (Sudafed PE, Biorphen) for congestion, treat this list as one that needs real attention, since six of its 81 entries carry a major rating. Phenylephrine tightens blood vessels to clear your nose, and more than half of the interactions here come from stimulant ingredients, ephedra above all, that can push blood…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Phenylephrine interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 12 real supplement products containing Japanese Apricot, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Japanese Apricot. Even though Japanese Apricot itself has no known interaction with Phenylephrine, 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 Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine 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 Japanese Apricot

Top half

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

29 days ago today

Medication Phenylephrine

Top 25%

#660 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 Japanese Apricot reference on this page ↓
Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine records this page draws on were last updated July 11, 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 Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS.

Supplement

About Japanese Apricot

What is Japanese Apricot?

Digestive upset
Fatigue and general wellness
Sore throat and cough
Antimicrobial support
Liver and detox support (traditional)

Japanese Apricot (Prunus mume) is a tart fruit used widely in East Asian foods and traditional medicine, often as pickled umeboshi or a concentrated extract. It has a long history of culinary and folk use, but high-quality human studies are limited, so most health claims remain unproven. The processed fruit is generally well tolerated as a food, but talk to a pharmacist or doctor before using concentrated supplements.

Prunus mume · Rosaceae · Fruit (often unripe, smoked, or processed into extracts) · Pickled fruit (umeboshi), concentrated fruit extract, paste, juice, syrup, capsules, tea

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

Japanese Apricot: dosing

There is no well-established standard dose for Japanese Apricot supplements. The amount varies widely depending on the form, whether it is a food (like umeboshi), a syrup, a paste, or a concentrated extract.The safest approach is to follow the directions on the product label and not exceed the recommended amount.

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

Read the full Japanese Apricot monograph & all interactions

Medication

About Phenylephrine

What Is Phenylephrine Used For?

Brand names: Gilchew, AH Chew D, Gilchew IR, Sudafed PE, Biorphen

Phenylephrine is used in a number of different forms for different purposes. Intravenous (IV) phenylephrine — including products like Biorphen and Immphentiv — is given in hospital settings to raise blood pressure in adults when it drops dangerously low due to blood vessel widening (vasodilation), such as during anesthesia. Phenylephrine Hydrochloride Injection 10 mg/mL is also approved for use in septic shock (a life-threatening infection that causes a severe drop in blood pressure).

Nasal spray and drop products (such as Neo-Synephrine and Equate Nasal) temporarily relieve nasal congestion from colds, hay fever, or upper respiratory allergies. Ophthalmic (eye drop) solutions dilate the pupil for eye exams. Rectal suppository products (such as Preparation H and ReVIVOL-XR) help relieve itching, burning, and discomfort associated with hemorrhoids.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Phenylephrine

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (221,388 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Fatigue 20,609 reports

Headache 17,301 reports

Nausea 16,925 reports

Diarrhea 14,221 reports

Dyspnea 13,719 reports

See full Phenylephrine drug information

Keep checking

Other Drugs & Japanese Apricot

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

0Major

208Moderate

0Minor

2,621No known interaction

208 Moderate 2,621 No interaction

Moderate

208 interactions

Showing 60 of 208 moderate interactions — see all 208 on the Japanese Apricot page.

No interaction 2,621 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,621 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Japanese Apricot list.

See the full Japanese Apricot interactions page

See every supplement checked against Phenylephrine, ranked by severity

Evidence & sources

Japanese Apricot References

The 10 references that drive our Japanese Apricot 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.

Chuda Y, Ono H, Ohnishi-Kameyama M, et al. Mumefural, citric acid derivative improving blood fluidity from fruit-juice concentrate of Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Sieb. et Zucc).J Agric Food Chem 1999;47:828-31. .
Matsuda H, Morikawa T, Ishiwada T, et al. Medicinal flowers. VIII. Radical scavenging constituents from the flowers of Prunus mume: structure of prunose III. Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo) 2003;51:440-3.. PubMed
Maekita T, Kato J, Enomoto S, et al. Japanese apricot improves symptoms of gastrointestinal dysmotility associated with gastroesophageal reflux disease. World J Gastroenterol. 2015;21(26):8170-7. PubMed
Takemura S, Yoshimasu K, Fukumoto J, et al. Safety and adherence of Umezu polyphenols in the Japanese plum (Prunus mume) in a 12-week double-blind randomized placebo-controlled pilot trial to evaluate antihypertensive effects. Environ Health Prev Med. 2 PubMed
Shin EJ, Hur HJ, Sung MJ, et al. Ethanol extract of the Prunus mume fruits stimulates glucose uptake by regulating PPAR-γ in C2C12 myotubes and ameliorates glucose intolerance and fat accumulation in mice fed a high-fat diet. Food Chem. 2013;141(4):
Hokari A, Ishikawa T, Tajiri H, et al. Efficacy of MK615 for the treatment of patients with liver disorders. World J Gastroenterol. 2012;18(31):4118-26. PubMed
Enomoto S, Yanaoka K, Utsunomiya H, et al. Inhibitory effects of Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Siebold et Zucc.; Ume) on Helicobacter pylori-related chronic gastritis. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010;64(7):714-9. PubMed
Beretta A, Accinni R, Dellanoce C, Tonini A, Cardot JM, Bussiére A. Efficacy of a standardized extract of Prunus mume in liver protection and redox homeostasis: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Phytother Res. 2016;30(6):949-55.
Iijima S, Ito M, Makabe K, Murakami Y, Yokooji T, Matsuo H. Case of food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis due to Japanese apricot and peach: Detection of causative antigens. J Dermatol. 2015;42(9):916-7. PubMed
Nakajima S, Fujita K, Inoue Y, Nishio M, Seto Y. Effect of the folk remedy, Bainiku-ekisu, a concentrate of Prunus mume juice, on Helicobacter pylori infection in humans. Helicobacter. 2006;11(6):589-91.

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 Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Japanese Apricot with Phenylephrine?

We do not list a known interaction between Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine. 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.

How was the Japanese Apricot and Phenylephrine combination checked?

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Phenylephrine is filed under 5 classifications, and Japanese Apricot has documented interactions with 2 drug classes — none of Phenylephrine'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 Japanese Apricot interact with any other medications?

Yes. Japanese Apricot has 208 documented drug interactions in our database — Phenylephrine 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 Phenylephrine interact with any supplements?

Yes. Phenylephrine has documented interactions with 81 supplements in our database — Japanese Apricot is not one of them. The Phenylephrine 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

Japanese Apricot monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Phenylephrine drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Phenylephrine supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Phenylephrine, 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 10 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Phenylephrine and Japanese Apricot?

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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.