Drug & supplement interaction

Khat + Atovaquone

Atovaquone brand name: Mepron.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated July 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 20, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Khat and Atovaquone 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 Atovaquone states a food rule worth keeping to, and 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

Khat and Atovaquone

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 Atovaquone and Khat 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.

Khat safety at a glance

Khat overall Avoid Khat is an addictive stimulant linked to serious health harms and is illegal in many countries.
Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe When used orally. Khat has been associated with reducing maternal food intake, maternal weight, infant birth weight, and placental blood flow. It has also been... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Possibly Unsafe When used orally. Khat has been associated with a reduction in breast milk production. Also, khat contains compounds that are metabolized to norpseudoephedrine,... 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 Atovaquone and Khat? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Atovaquone

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Atovaquone is filed under a single classification — oral drugs. Khat has documented interactions with 7 drug classes — the most serious being amoxicillin (amoxil, trimox) (major), antihypertensive drugs (moderate) and antipsychotic drugs (moderate) — and none of Atovaquone’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

Khat Does Interact With Other Medications

Khat has 4 major, 401 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Atovaquone isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Major 4 Moderate 401 No known interaction 2,425 (incl. Atovaquone)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Khat

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

What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Khat and Atovaquone 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. 2 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Low mood Worth acting on Additional detail

    Khat

    “Orally, Khat has been associated with euphoria, excessive talkativeness, hyperactivity, aggressiveness, anxiety, elevated blood pressure, tachycardia, and manic behavior. High doses of khat have been reported to cause depressed mood, paranoia and psychosis.”

    Khat · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in anxiety.

    6 sources cited
    1. 10120. Randall T. Khat abuse fuels Somali conflict, drains economy. JAMA 1993;269:12-13. DOI
    2. 57391. Hassan, N. A., Gunaid, A. A., El Khally, F. M., and Murray-Lyon, I. M. The effect of chewing Khat leaves on human mood. Saudi.Med.J. 2002;23(7):850-853. DOI
    3. 57410. Granek, M., Shalev, A., and Weingarten, A. M. Khat-induced hypnagogic hallucinations. Acta Psychiatr.Scand. 1988;78(4):458-461. PubMed
    4. 57420. Jager, A. D. and Sireling, L. Natural history of Khat psychosis. Aust.N.Z.J.Psychiatry 1994;28(2):331-332. PubMed
    5. 57422. Yousef, G., Huq, Z., and Lambert, T. Khat chewing as a cause of psychosis. Br.J.Hosp.Med. 10-4-1995;54(7):322-326.
    6. 6. The Review of Natural Products by Facts and Comparisons. St. Louis, MO: Wolters Kluwer Co., 1999.

    “Orally, khat has been reported to cause mood swings and depressed mood. High doses of khat have been reported to cause paranoia and psychosis, including strange experiences and hallucinations. In one cross-sectional study, such symptoms occurred more frequently in female and younger khat chewers.”

    Khat · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in depression.

    6 sources cited
    1. 57391. Hassan, N. A., Gunaid, A. A., El Khally, F. M., and Murray-Lyon, I. M. The effect of chewing Khat leaves on human mood. Saudi.Med.J. 2002;23(7):850-853. DOI
    2. 10120. Randall T. Khat abuse fuels Somali conflict, drains economy. JAMA 1993;269:12-13. DOI
    3. 57410. Granek, M., Shalev, A., and Weingarten, A. M. Khat-induced hypnagogic hallucinations. Acta Psychiatr.Scand. 1988;78(4):458-461. PubMed
    4. 57420. Jager, A. D. and Sireling, L. Natural history of Khat psychosis. Aust.N.Z.J.Psychiatry 1994;28(2):331-332. PubMed
    5. 57422. Yousef, G., Huq, Z., and Lambert, T. Khat chewing as a cause of psychosis. Br.J.Hosp.Med. 10-4-1995;54(7):322-326.
    6. 106449. Ongeri L, Kirui F, Muniu E, et al. Khat use and psychotic symptoms in a rural Khat growing population in Kenya: a household survey. BMC Psychiatry 2019;19(1):137. PubMed

    Atovaquone

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

  • Liver problems Worth acting on Additional detail

    Khat

    “Orally, chewing khat has been reported to cause livery injury in at least a few dozen cases, with symptoms including jaundice, fatigue, pruritus, anorexia, abdominal pain, and dark urine. In some cases, liver injury has resolved after discontinuation of khat consumption.”

    Khat · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in anorexia.

    6 sources cited
    1. 95228. Alhaddad OM, Elsabaawy MM, Rewisha EA, et al. Khat-induced liver injuries: A report of two cases. Arab J Gastroenterol. 2016;17(1):45-8. PubMed
    2. 95231. Chapman MH, Kajihara M, Borges G, et al. Severe, acute liver injury and khat leaves. N Engl J Med. 2010;362(17):1642-4. PubMed
    3. 95234. Forbes MP, Raj AS, Martin J, Lampe G, Powell EE. Khat-associated hepatitis. Med J Aust. 2013;199(7):498-9. PubMed
    4. 95238. Peevers CG, Moorghen M, Collins PL, Gordon FH, McCune CA. Liver disease and cirrhosis because of Khat chewing in UK Somali men: a case series. Liver Int. 2010;30(8):1242-3. PubMed
    5. 95239. Roelandt P, George C, d'Heygere F, et al. Acute liver failure secondary to khat (Catha edulis)-induced necrotic hepatitis requiring liver transplantation: case report. Transplant Proc. 2011;43(9):3493-5. PubMed
    6. 106452. Palacios Argueta P, Attar B, Sikavi C, Alagiozian-Angelova V, Mishra S. Drug-Induced Liver Injury Caused by "Khat," an Herbal Stimulant. ACG Case Rep J 2020;7(11):e00480. PubMed

    Atovaquone

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

  • Trouble sleeping Additional detail

    Khat

    “Orally, khat can cause euphoria, excessive talkativeness, hyperactivity, aggressiveness, anxiety, and manic behavior. After use, insomnia, malaise, and lack of concentration have been reported (6). Khat has been reported to cause migraine and cerebral hemorrhage (6).

    Rarely, khat has been associated with encephalopathy, intraparenchymal brain hemorrhage, and reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS).”

    Khat · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in anxiety.

    4 sources cited
    1. 6. The Review of Natural Products by Facts and Comparisons. St. Louis, MO: Wolters Kluwer Co., 1999.
    2. 95230. Baharith H, Zarrin A. Khat - a new precipitating factor for reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome: a case report. J Med Case Rep. 2016;10(1):351. PubMed
    3. 95240. Tuladhar AM, Boogaarts HD, de Leeuw FE, van Dijk E. Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome after chewing khat leaves. Cerebrovasc Dis. 2013;36(2):158-9. PubMed
    4. 98511. Bede P, El-Kininy N, O'Hara F, Menon P, Finegan E, Healy D. 'Khatatonia' - cathinone-induced hypertensive encephalopathy. Neth J Med. 2017;75(10):448-450.

    Atovaquone

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

  • Fever / Diarrhea Additional detail

    Khat

    “Orally, chewing khat has been reported to cause infection from Fasciola hepatica and campylobacter fetus. There are multiple reports of acute liver disease due to fascioliasis, or liver flute infection, in Somalian males living in the Netherlands. Fascioliasis symptoms include abdominal pain, eosinophilia, jaundice, and pruritus and typically resolve after treatment.”

    Khat · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in cirrhosis.

    3 sources cited
    1. 6464. Cats A, Scholten P, Meuwissen SGM, et al. Acute Fasciola hepatica infection attributed to chewing khat. Gut 2000;47:584-5.
    2. 95233. de Bree LC, Bodelier AG, Verburg GP. Fasciola hepatica as a cause of jaundice after chewing khat: a case report. Neth J Med. 2013;71(9):478-9.
    3. 95236. Martínez-Balzano C, Kohlitz PJ, Chaudhary P, Hegazy H. Campylobacter fetus bacteremia in a young healthy adult transmitted by khat chewing. J Infect. 2013;66(2):184-6. PubMed

    Atovaquone

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

  • Itching Additional detail

    Khat

    Recorded for Khat in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Liver problems above.

    Atovaquone

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

  • Headache Additional detail

    Khat

    Recorded for Khat in the same Natural Medicines adverse-effect record shown under Trouble sleeping above.

    Atovaquone

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

Reported for Khat but not commonly for Atovaquone: dependence or withdrawal symptoms, raised blood pressure, hallucinations and a heart attack.

Effects for Atovaquone come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Khat come from the Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, quoted above. Wording is matched across sources by our own clinical vocabulary, so treat this as a prompt to pay attention, not a diagnosis.

Special populations

Khat in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe

When used orally. Khat has been associated with reducing maternal food intake, maternal weight, infant birth weight, and placental blood flow. It has also been associated with an increased risk for chest pain, elevated heart rate, and high blood pressure during pregnancy.

Lactation Possibly Unsafe

When used orally. Khat has been associated with a reduction in breast milk production. Also, khat contains compounds that are metabolized to norpseudoephedrine, which passes into breast milk; 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

How to take them

Some Atovaquone Products Have a Food Rule — Khat Should Not Break It

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

jirovecii Pneumonia The recommended oral dosage is 1,500 mg (10 mL) once daily administered with food.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Atovaquone — 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.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Atovaquone

This page covers Khat only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Atovaquone page lists 17 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Coffee Charcoal (moderate), European Mandrake (moderate), Glucomannan (moderate) and Guar Gum (moderate).

By severity: 1 major · 7 moderate · 9 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Atovaquone page

“Atovaquone (Mepron) is usually taken to prevent or treat Pneumocystis pneumonia, often when the immune system is already weakened, so a dose that never absorbs is a treatment failure, not a nuisance. All 17 supplement interactions on file act in the gut, changing how much of the drug reaches the blood, and I read this list as one deser…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Atovaquone interaction page

How much people look this up

Where Khat and Atovaquone 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 Khat
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Atovaquone
Top 25%

#545 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 Khat reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Khat and Atovaquone 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 Khat

What is Khat?

Khat
  • Stimulant for energy and alertness
  • Euphoria and mood elevation
  • Reducing fatigue
  • Appetite suppression
  • Social and traditional ceremonies

Khat is a plant chewed for its amphetamine-like stimulant effects, but it carries serious risks including high blood pressure, heart problems, mental health effects, and dependence. It is a controlled substance and illegal in the United States and many other countries, so it should not be used.

Catha edulis · Celastraceae · Leaves and young shoots · Fresh leaves for chewing, dried leaves, tea; sometimes smoked

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

Khat: dosing

There is no safe or established dose of khat. It is not a regulated supplement, and the amount of active compounds varies widely depending on the freshness and source of the leaves.Because khat is illegal in the United States and many other countries and carries real health risks, no dosing recommendation can be given.

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

Read the full Khat monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Atovaquone

What Is Atovaquone Used For?

Brand name: Mepron

Atovaquone oral suspension — available as the brand Mepron and as generic products — is used in adults and adolescents aged 13 and older who cannot tolerate trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX), the usual first-choice treatment.

It is approved for two purposes: preventing PCP in people at high risk, and treating mild-to-moderate PCP in those who already have it. It has not been studied for severe PCP or for people whose PCP is not responding to TMP-SMX, so it is not used in those situations.

See full Atovaquone drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Khat

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

4Major
401Moderate
0Minor
2,424No known interaction
4 Major 401 Moderate 2,424 No interaction
Major

4 interactions

Moderate

401 interactions

Showing 60 of 401 moderate interactions — see all 401 on the Khat page.

No interaction 2,424 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,424 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Khat list.

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

Khat References

The 47 references that drive our Khat 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. The Review of Natural Products by Facts and Comparisons. St. Louis, MO: Wolters Kluwer Co., 1999.
  2. Cats A, Scholten P, Meuwissen SGM, et al. Acute Fasciola hepatica infection attributed to chewing khat. Gut 2000;47:584-5.
  3. Randall T. Khat abuse fuels Somali conflict, drains economy. JAMA 1993;269:12-13. DOI
  4. Attef, O. A., Ali, A. A., and Ali, H. M. Effect of Khat chewing on the bioavailability of ampicillin and amoxycillin. J.Antimicrob.Chemother. 1997;39(4):523-525. PubMed
  5. Hassan, N. A., Gunaid, A. A., Abdo-Rabbo, A. A., Abdel-Kader, Z. Y., al Mansoob, M. A., Awad, A. Y., and Murray-Lyon, I. M. The effect of Qat chewing on blood pressure and heart rate in healthy volunteers. Trop.Doct. 2000;30(2):107-108. PubMed
  6. Al Hadrani, A. M. Khat induced hemorrhoidal disease in Yemen. Saudi.Med.J. 2000;21(5):475-477. DOI
  7. Giannini, A. J. and Nakoneczie, A. M. Treatment of Khat Addiction with Bromocriptine Mesylate: A Case Report and Review of Cocaine- and Amphetamine-Like Effects. Am J Ther 1995;2(7):487-489. PubMed
  8. Hassan, N. A., Gunaid, A. A., El Khally, F. M., and Murray-Lyon, I. M. The effect of chewing Khat leaves on human mood. Saudi.Med.J. 2002;23(7):850-853. DOI
  9. Giannini, A. J., Miller, N. S., and Turner, C. E. Treatment of khat addiction. J.Subst.Abuse Treat. 1992;9(4):379-382. PubMed
  10. Al Motarreb, A., Briancon, S., Al Jaber, N., Al Adhi, B., Al Jailani, F., Salek, M. S., and Broadley, K. J. Khat chewing is a risk factor for acute myocardial infarction: a case-control study. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2005;59(5):574-581. PubMed
  11. Hassan, N. A., Gunaid, A. A., El Khally, F. M., Al Noami, M. Y., and Murray-Lyon, I. M. Khat chewing and arterial blood pressure. A randomized controlled clinical trial of alpha-1 and selective beta-1 adrenoceptor blockade. Saudi.Med J 2005;26(4):537-541 DOI
  12. Brenneisen, R., Fisch, H. U., Koelbing, U., Geisshusler, S., and Kalix, P. Amphetamine-like effects in humans of the khat alkaloid cathinone. Br.J.Clin.Pharmacol. 1990;30(6):825-828. PubMed
  13. Granek, M., Shalev, A., and Weingarten, A. M. Khat-induced hypnagogic hallucinations. Acta Psychiatr.Scand. 1988;78(4):458-461. PubMed
  14. Nencini, P., Ahmed, A. M., Amiconi, G., and Elmi, A. S. Tolerance develops to sympathetic effects of khat in humans. Pharmacology 1984;28(3):150-154. PubMed
  15. Jager, A. D. and Sireling, L. Natural history of Khat psychosis. Aust.N.Z.J.Psychiatry 1994;28(2):331-332. 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 Khat and Atovaquone Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Khat with Atovaquone?
We do not list a known interaction between Khat and Atovaquone. 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 Khat and Atovaquone have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to 7 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.
Should I take Khat and Atovaquone at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Atovaquone says to take it with food. If you take Khat on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate and take Atovaquone with a meal where the label says to. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient — two Atovaquone products can differ — so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Khat and Atovaquone combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Atovaquone is filed under 1 classification, and Khat has documented interactions with 7 drug classes — none of Atovaquone'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 Khat interact with any other medications?
Yes. Khat has 405 documented drug interactions in our database — Atovaquone 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 Atovaquone interact with any supplements?
Yes. Atovaquone has documented interactions with 17 supplements in our database — Khat is not one of them. The Atovaquone 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

Khat monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Atovaquone drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Atovaquone supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Atovaquone, 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 47 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Atovaquone and Khat?

Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.

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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.