Drug & supplement interaction

Lychee + Ocrelizumab

Ocrelizumab brand name: Ocrevus.

Minor Interaction
The bottom line Minor

Lychee has a minor interaction with Ocrelizumab. Theoretically, lychee might reduce the effectiveness of immunosuppressant drugs.

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

Lychee and Ocrelizumab

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

Minor

IMMUNOSUPPRESSANTS

Why this applies to Ocrelizumab

Ocrelizumab falls under IMMUNOSUPPRESSANTS — the group Lychee interacts with.

Theoretically, lychee might reduce the effectiveness of immunosuppressant drugs.
In vitro, flavonoids extracted from lychee show immunostimulant effects. So far, this effect has not been reported in humans.
Severity Minor 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 with Ocrevus and lychee. Ocrelizumab works by quieting part of your immune system (it clears certain B-cells) to calm the MS activity behind it. In a lab dish, some of the flavonoid plant compounds in lychee seemed to do the opposite, giving the immune system a little nudge to be more active. The worry, in theory, is that this could work against what Ocrevus is trying to do.

I want to be honest about how thin this is. This is theoretical only, based on test-tube studies, and has never actually been seen in people. Enjoying lychee fruit as food is very unlikely to matter. Concentrated lychee extracts are the bigger question mark, so loop in your neurologist or pharmacist before starting any. Don't change your Ocrevus.

References
  1. Zhao M, Yang B, Wang J, et al. Immunomodulatory and anticancer activities of flavonoids extracted from litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn) pericarp. Int Immunopharmacol 2007;7(2):162-6. 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

Lychee Also Interacts With Other Medications

Lychee has 86 moderate, 120 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Ocrelizumab 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 Lychee

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

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Ocrelizumab

This page covers Lychee only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Ocrelizumab page lists 53 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Active Hexose Correlated Compound (ahcc) (moderate), Alfalfa (moderate), American Ginseng (moderate), Andrographis (moderate) and Ashwagandha (moderate).

By severity: 52 moderate · 1 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Ocrelizumab page

“Echinacea, the cold-season staple, revs up the immune system, which is exactly what Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is given to quiet in multiple sclerosis. That single tension runs through all 53 supplements on this page.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Ocrelizumab interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 98 real supplement products containing Lychee, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Lychee. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Ocrelizumab too, on top of Lychee — 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 Lychee and Ocrelizumab 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 Lychee
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Ocrelizumab
Top half

#1,092 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 Lychee

What is Lychee?

  • General nutrition and antioxidant support
  • Digestive complaints (traditional use)
  • Cough and sore throat (traditional use)
  • Blood sugar support (preliminary)
  • Weight and metabolic support (preliminary)

Lychee is a sweet tropical fruit that is nutritious and a source of vitamin C and antioxidant plant compounds. While the fruit is a healthy food for most people, supplement-strength extracts have only limited research behind specific health claims, and eating large amounts of unripe lychee on an empty stomach has been linked to dangerous low blood sugar in undernourished children. Talk to your pharmacist or doctor before using lychee extracts for any health condition.

Read the full Lychee monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Ocrelizumab Injection

What Is Ocrelizumab Injection Used For?

Brand name: Ocrevus

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) is given by intravenous (IV) infusion and is approved for adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) — including clinically isolated syndrome, relapsing-remitting MS, and active secondary progressive MS — as well as adults with primary progressive MS (PPMS).

Ocrevus is also approved for pediatric patients 10 years of age and older who weigh at least 25 kg (about 55 lbs) and have relapsing-remitting MS.

See full Ocrelizumab Injection drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Lychee

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

0Major
86Moderate
120Minor
2,623No known interaction
Moderate

86 interactions

Showing 60 of 86 moderate interactions — see all 86 on the Lychee page.

Minor

120 interactions

Showing 60 of 120 minor interactions — see all 120 on the Lychee page.

No interaction 2,623 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 Lychee and Ocrelizumab Together: Common Questions

Can you take Lychee with Ocrelizumab?
There is only a minor interaction, which is usually not serious. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
How serious is the Lychee and Ocrelizumab interaction?
We rate it Minor. This interaction is generally not clinically significant, but it remains worth noting and discussing with your pharmacist.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

Still Have a Question About Ocrelizumab and Lychee?

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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.