Drug & supplement interaction

Job's Tears + Ritonavir

Ritonavir brand name: Norvir.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Job's Tears and Ritonavir 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 Ritonavir states a food rule worth keeping to.

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Interaction report

Job's Tears and Ritonavir

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 Ritonavir and Job's Tears 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.

Job's Tears safety at a glance

Job's Tears overall Use caution Generally safe as a cooked food, but concentrated supplement evidence is limited.
Pregnancy Avoid Traditionally avoided in pregnancy and human safety data are lacking.
Breastfeeding Use caution Not enough reliable data; use only ordinary food amounts and check with a clinician.

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

Still wondering about combining Ritonavir and Job's Tears? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Ritonavir

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Ritonavir is filed under 10 classifications — including protease inhibitors (pis), cytochrome p450 1a2 (cyp1a2) inducers, cytochrome p450 2d6 (cyp2d6) inhibitors. Job's Tears has documented interactions with 5 drug classes — the most serious being antidiabetes drugs (moderate), chlorzoxazone (parafon forte, paraflex) (moderate) and dextromethorphan (robitussin dm, others) (moderate) — and none of Ritonavir’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

Job's Tears Does Interact With Other Medications

Job's Tears has 128 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Ritonavir isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Job's Tears

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Job's Tears. Pick one to open its full report.

What to actually watch for

What Ritonavir’s Own FDA Label Lists

This is not an interaction — none of it involves Job's Tears. These are the most notable effects listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of Ritonavir’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. 10 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • An electrolyte imbalance Worth acting on
  • Muscle weakness Worth acting on
  • Dehydration Worth acting on
  • Pancreatitis Worth acting on
  • Yellowing of the skin or eyes Worth acting on
  • Fainting Worth acting on
  • Confusion Worth acting on
  • A severe skin reaction Worth acting on
  • Seizures Worth acting on
  • A low platelet count Worth acting on

Showing the 10 most notable of 42 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 Ritonavir. Read the label on DailyMed › Where a percentage is shown, it is the share of 94,062 voluntary FDA FAERS reports for Ritonavir that mention that effect — a reporting proportion, not an incidence rate and not evidence the drug caused it. Job's Tears’s licensed record lists no adverse effects our clinical vocabulary could match, so there is no Job's Tears side to compare — that is a limit of the record, not a statement that Job's Tears has no side effects.

How to take them

Some Ritonavir Products Have a Food Rule — Job's Tears Should Not Break It

At least one FDA label for a product containing Ritonavir says to take it with food. If you take Job's Tears on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate — and take Ritonavir 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 Ritonavir 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.

The bitter aftertaste of NORVIR oral powder may be lessened if administered with food.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Ritonavir — 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 Job's Tears or Ritonavir

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Job's Tears or Ritonavir, 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 Ritonavir

This page covers Job's Tears only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Ritonavir page lists 178 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Beer (major), Grapefruit (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major) and St. John's Wort (major).

By severity: 6 major · 136 moderate · 36 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Ritonavir page

“If you take ritonavir (Norvir), slow down before adding any supplement from this page. Six of the 178 ingredients here carry a major rating, and St.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Ritonavir interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Job's Tears as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 111 real supplement products containing Job's Tears, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Job's Tears. Even though Job's Tears itself has no known interaction with Ritonavir, 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 Job's Tears and Ritonavir 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 Job's Tears
Steady interest

#1,083 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Ritonavir
Steady interest

#2,167 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 Job's Tears reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Job's Tears and Ritonavir 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 .
Supplement

About Job's Tears

What is Job's Tears?

  • Digestive support
  • Skin health and smoothness
  • Mild swelling or water retention
  • General nourishing food/tonic
  • Joint discomfort (traditional use)

Job's Tears is a grain-like seed long used as a food and in traditional medicine, especially in East Asia. While it is generally safe as a food and is being studied for possible effects on metabolism, inflammation, and immunity, strong human evidence for its health claims is limited. Talk with your pharmacist or doctor before using concentrated supplements, especially during pregnancy.

Coix lacryma-jobi · Poaceae · Seeds (grain/kernel), sometimes root · Whole grain, cooked food, tea, powder, capsules, flour

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

Job's Tears: dosing

There is no established standardized dose for Job's Tears as a supplement. As a food, it is simply cooked and eaten like other whole grains.For capsules, powders, or teas, follow the directions on the product label, since strengths vary widely between products.

From our Job's Tears monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.

Read the full Job's Tears monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Ritonavir

What Is Ritonavir Used For?

Brand name: Norvir

Ritonavir (brand name Norvir) is used together with other HIV medicines to treat HIV-1 infection in adults and children older than one month of age. It is always taken as part of a combination regimen — never on its own.

Norvir oral powder is specifically indicated for pediatric patients with HIV-1 infection. Norvir tablets and oral solution are indicated for both adults and pediatric patients with HIV-1 infection. Ritonavir tablets (generic) are also indicated for the treatment of HIV-1 infection in combination with other antiretroviral agents.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Ritonavir

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (94,560 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Covid-19 23,011 reports
Disease recurrence 20,169 reports
Dysgeusia 7,508 reports
Diarrhea 5,704 reports
Nausea 4,358 reports
See full Ritonavir drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Job's Tears

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

0Major
128Moderate
0Minor
2,701No known interaction
Moderate

128 interactions

Showing 60 of 128 moderate interactions — see all 128 on the Job's Tears page.

No interaction 2,701 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Job's Tears References

The 3 references that drive our Job's Tears 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. Chiang W, Cheng C, Chiang M, Chung KT. Effects of dehulled adlay on the culture count of some microbiota and their metabolism in the gastrointestinal tract of rats. J Agric Food Chem 2000;48:829-32. PubMed
  2. Yu YM, Chang WC, Liu CS, Tsai CM. Effect of young barley leaf extract and adlay on plasma lipids and LDL oxidation in hyperlipidemic smokers. Biol Pharm Bull 2004;27:802-5. PubMed
  3. Yao HT, Lin JH, Liu YT, Li ML, Chiang W. Food-Drug Interaction between the Adlay Bran Oil and Drugs in Rats. Nutrients 2019;11(10):2473. PubMed

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 Job's Tears and Ritonavir Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Job's Tears with Ritonavir?
We do not list a known interaction between Job's Tears and Ritonavir. 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 Job's Tears and Ritonavir at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Ritonavir says to take it with food. If you take Job's Tears on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate and take Ritonavir with a meal where the label says to. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient — two Ritonavir products can differ — so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Job's Tears and Ritonavir combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Ritonavir is filed under 10 classifications, and Job's Tears has documented interactions with 5 drug classes — none of Ritonavir'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 Job's Tears interact with any other medications?
Yes. Job's Tears has 128 documented drug interactions in our database — Ritonavir 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 Ritonavir interact with any supplements?
Yes. Ritonavir has documented interactions with 178 supplements in our database — Job's Tears is not one of them. The Ritonavir 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 Ritonavir and Job's Tears?

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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.