Drug & supplement interaction

Lithium + Sevelamer

Sevelamer brand name: Renagel.

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 Lithium and Sevelamer 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 Sevelamer 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.

Know someone taking this? Share
Facebook Post Reddit Email
On this page
Interaction report

Lithium and Sevelamer

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 Sevelamer and Lithium 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.

Lithium safety at a glance

Lithium overall Use caution Lithium has a narrow safety margin and prescription forms require blood monitoring; supplement forms are not well studied.
Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe When lithium carbonate and lithium citrate are used orally. Lithium can cause fetal toxicity and increases the risk for cardiac and other abnormalities, includi... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Likely Unsafe When used orally. Lithium is secreted into breast milk and may cause adverse effects in the nursing infant. Prescription lithium may be used in circumstances wh... 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 Sevelamer and Lithium? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Sevelamer

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Sevelamer is filed under 2 classifications — including oral drugs. Lithium has documented interactions with 11 drug classes — the most serious being diuretic drugs (major), serotonergic drugs (major) and ace inhibitors (aceis) (moderate) — and none of Sevelamer’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

Lithium Does Interact With Other Medications

Lithium has 259 major, 256 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Sevelamer isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Major 259 Moderate 256 No known interaction 2,315 (incl. Sevelamer)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Lithium

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

What to actually watch for

No Interaction Found — But Data Suggests Lithium and Sevelamer May Share a Side Effect

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.

  • A skin rash Additional detail

    Lithium

    “Orally, lithium can cause or exacerbate skin disorders such as hair loss, acne, psoriasis, and rash (9,15,97770). A case of Stevens-Johnson syndrome is also reported in a patient with bipolar disorder who took lithium carbonate at an unknown dose for 17 days.”

    Lithium · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in acne.

    4 sources cited
    1. 9. Martindale W. Martindale the Extra Pharmacopoeia. Pharmaceutical Press, 1999.
    2. 15. McEvoy GK, ed. AHFS Drug Information. Bethesda, MD: American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, 1998.
    3. 97770. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2011/017812s028,018421s027lbl.pdf. Accessed Nov. 21, 2018
    4. 111317. Itoh M, Fukuya Y, Endo C, et al. Lithium carbonate-induced Stevens-Johnson syndrome: the first case report. Int J Dermatol 2023;62(3):e165-e167. PubMed

    Sevelamer

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

Reported for Lithium but not commonly for Sevelamer: a severe skin reaction, kidney problems, blood clots and memory problems.

Effects for Sevelamer come from the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of its FDA label; effects for Lithium 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

Lithium in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe

When lithium carbonate and lithium citrate are used orally. Lithium can cause fetal toxicity and increases the risk for cardiac and other abnormalities, including neural tube and urethral defects. However, it does not seem to increase the risk for preterm birth or low birth rate. Some research suggests lithium might increase the risk for spontaneous abortion. Based on a meta-analysis of 2 population studies, taking lithium during pregnancy may increase the risk for spontaneous abortion when compared with the general population, but not when compared with patients with affective disorders not taking lithium during pregnancy. This suggests that it may be the presence of affective disorder itself, or the possible associated use of other teratogenic drugs or substances during pregnancy, which may increase the risk for spontaneous abortion. When the potential benefits to the mother and child outweigh the possible risk to the fetus, prescription lithium may be used with close monitoring by a healthcare professional. The safety of lithium supplements during pregnancy is unknown.

Lactation Likely Unsafe

When used orally. Lithium is secreted into breast milk and may cause adverse effects in the nursing infant. Prescription lithium may be used in circumstances when the potential maternal benefits outweigh the possible risk to the infant. The infant should be closely monitored for signs of lithium toxicity.

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 Sevelamer Products Have a Food Rule — Lithium Should Not Break It

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

2 DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION Starting dose of Renvela is 0.8 or 1.6 grams administered orally three times per day with meals based on serum phosphorus levels for adult patients and based on body surface area (BSA) category for pediatric patients.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Sevelamer — 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 Lithium or Sevelamer

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

This page covers Lithium only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Sevelamer page lists 18 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 · 10 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Sevelamer page

“Kidney patients who take sevelamer (Renagel) to control phosphorus have a real reason to pause over this page, and activated charcoal is why. It carries the only major rating here because it can trap medicines in the gut and sharply cut the amount the body actually gets.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Sevelamer interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 330 real supplement products containing Lithium, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Lithium. Even though Lithium itself has no known interaction with Sevelamer, 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 Lithium and Sevelamer 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 Lithium
Top 25%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Sevelamer
Steady interest

#2,708 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 Lithium reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Lithium and Sevelamer 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 Lithium

What is Lithium?

Lithium
  • Mood support
  • Bipolar disorder (prescription)
  • Healthy mental function
  • Irritability or stress
  • Sleep support

Lithium is a naturally occurring metal that, in prescription form (lithium carbonate or citrate), is an FDA-approved, well-proven treatment for bipolar disorder. Low-dose supplement forms like lithium orotate are sold for mood support, but there is very little reliable evidence that they work, and even small amounts of lithium can be risky for some people. Always talk to a pharmacist or doctor before taking any lithium product.

Mineral element (not a plant); various lithium salts · Capsules, tablets (lithium orotate, lithium aspartate in supplements; lithium carbonate and citrate as prescription drugs)

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

Lithium: dosing

There is no established, well-tested dose for low-dose lithium supplements, and product strengths vary widely between brands.

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

Read the full Lithium monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Sevelamer

What Is Sevelamer Used For?

Brand name: Renagel

Sevelamer is used to control serum phosphorus (the level of phosphorus in your blood) in people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) who are on dialysis. High phosphorus is a serious problem for dialysis patients and needs to be managed with medication and diet.

Sevelamer carbonate tablets and Renvela® (sevelamer carbonate) oral suspension are approved for adults and children 6 years of age and older. Sevelamer hydrochloride tablets are indicated for adults with CKD on dialysis; their safety and effectiveness in CKD patients not on dialysis have not been studied.

See full Sevelamer drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Lithium

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

259Major
256Moderate
0Minor
2,314No known interaction
259 Major 256 Moderate 2,314 No interaction
Major

259 interactions

Showing 60 of 259 major interactions — see all 259 on the Lithium page.

Moderate

256 interactions

Showing 60 of 256 moderate interactions — see all 256 on the Lithium page.

No interaction 2,314 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,314 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Lithium list.

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

Lithium References

The 26 references that drive our Lithium 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. Martindale W. Martindale the Extra Pharmacopoeia. Pharmaceutical Press, 1999.
  2. McEvoy GK, ed. AHFS Drug Information. Bethesda, MD: American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, 1998.
  3. Perlis RH, Sachs GS, Lafer B, et al. Effect of abrupt change from standard to low serum levels of lithium: a reanalysis of double-blind lithium maintenance data. Am J Psychiatry 2002;159:1155-9.. PubMed
  4. Pinelli JM, Symington AJ, Cunningham KA, Paes BA. Case report and review of the perinatal implications of maternal lithium use. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2002;187:245-9.. PubMed
  5. Sawagashira R, Sasagawa Y, Matsukura M, Takamaru Y. Case of myxedema coma induced by lithium carbonate in a patient with schizophrenia. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2018;72(2):131. PubMed
  6. Foulser P, Abbasi Y, Mathilakath A, Nilforooshan R. Do not treat the numbers: lithium toxicity. BMJ Case Rep. 2017;2017. pii: bcr-2017-220079. PubMed
  7. https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2011/017812s028,018421s027lbl.pdf. Accessed Nov. 21, 2018
  8. Fornaro M, Maritan E, Ferranti R, et al. Lithium Exposure During Pregnancy and the Postpartum Period: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Safety and Efficacy Outcomes. Am J Psychiatry. 2020;177(1):76-92. DOI
  9. Rauf A, Gul S, Nasir M, Arif U, Oyenuga M. A Rare Case of Lithium-induced Partial Nephrogenic Diabetes Insipidus. Cureus. 2020;12(4):e7877. PubMed
  10. Hanna RM, Hasnain H, Sangalang MD, et al. Three Patients with Lithium-Associated Hyperparathyroidism: Literature Review Regarding Medical and Surgical Management. Case Rep Nephrol Dial. 2019;9(2):108-118. PubMed
  11. Rana P, Alba Aponte P, Babar G. An Adolescent Female with Bipolar Disorder Presenting with Lithium-Induced Hyperthyroidism. Case Rep Endocrinol. 2020;2020:1283464. PubMed
  12. Nwabufor PC, Omoniyi ON, Oyibo SO. A Case of Lithium-Associated Hypocalciuric Hypercalcemia. Cureus. 2020;12(9):e10606. PubMed
  13. Landa E, Wagner S, Makkar A, Liu A, Jung D. An atypical presentation of serotonin syndrome. Cureus. 2021;13(2):e13377. PubMed
  14. Benjelloun R, Motaib I, Otheman Y. Lithium-associated hypercalcemia presenting with neuropsychiatric manifestations in a patient with bipolar disorder. Case Rep Psychiatry. 2020;2020:6630838. PubMed
  15. Nombora O, Samico A, Venâncio Â. Lithium-Induced Dysgeusia and Hyposmia: A Case Report and a Literature Review. Clin Neuropharmacol 2023;46(1):31-33. 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 Lithium and Sevelamer Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Lithium with Sevelamer?
We do not list a known interaction between Lithium and Sevelamer. 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 Lithium and Sevelamer have any of the same side effects?
Yes — our sources link each of them separately to one 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 Lithium and Sevelamer at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Sevelamer says to take it with food. If you take Lithium on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate and take Sevelamer with a meal where the label says to. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient — two Sevelamer products can differ — so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Lithium and Sevelamer combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Sevelamer is filed under 2 classifications, and Lithium has documented interactions with 11 drug classes — none of Sevelamer'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 Lithium interact with any other medications?
Yes. Lithium has 515 documented drug interactions in our database — Sevelamer 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 Sevelamer interact with any supplements?
Yes. Sevelamer has documented interactions with 18 supplements in our database — Lithium is not one of them. The Sevelamer 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

Lithium monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Sevelamer drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Sevelamer supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Sevelamer, 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 26 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Sevelamer and Lithium?

Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.

Ask a pharmacist

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.