Drug & supplement interaction

Maple Syrup Diet + Cephalexin

Cephalexin brand names: Keflex, Keftab, Cephalex, Lexin.

No Known Interaction
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Maple Syrup Diet and Cephalexin 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.

Know someone interested in this? Share
Interaction report

Maple Syrup Diet and Cephalexin

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 Cephalexin and Maple Syrup Diet in our sources. This does not guarantee that the combination is completely free of risk — research on Maple Syrup Diet alongside specific medications may be limited.

Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Maple Syrup Diet at all — not against Cephalexin, and not against any other medication we track. This verdict therefore rests on the absence of any recorded data, not on research that looked at this combination and found nothing. We cannot rule an interaction out.

Maple Syrup Diet is an eating pattern rather than something you take. Ask your pharmacist or doctor before changing how you eat while on a prescribed medicine: some medicines are dosed around meals, and a change in diet can change how they work. 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.

Maple Syrup Diet safety at a glance

Maple Syrup Diet overall Use caution It is a very-low-nutrient liquid fast that can cause nutrient deficiencies and other problems, especially if done for more than a day or two.
Pregnancy Possibly Unsafe During pregnancy and lactation. The maple syrup diet is not intended to provide adequate nutrition and can result in electrolyte imbalances when used short-term... Read the full pregnancy detail
Breastfeeding Possibly Unsafe During pregnancy and lactation. The maple syrup diet is not intended to provide adequate nutrition and can result in electrolyte imbalances when used short-term... 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 Cephalexin and Maple Syrup Diet? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
What to actually watch for

What Maple Syrup Diet Itself Has Been Linked To

This is not an interaction — nothing below involves Cephalexin. It is the side-effect record for Maple Syrup Diet on its own, from the licensed Natural Medicines monograph. If something new turns up after you add Maple Syrup Diet, this list is the first place to look. One entry is worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • An electrolyte imbalance Worth acting on Additional detail

    “There is limited reliable information available about the adverse effects of the maple syrup diet. However, the maple syrup diet does not provide adequate nutrition and involves the consumption of large quantities of water. This can lead to electrolyte imbalances when used short-term and malnutrition when used long-term.”

    Maple Syrup Diet · Natural Medicines adverse-effect record, reported in malnutrition.

    1 source cited
    1. 103181. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. "Detoxes" and "Cleanses": What you need to know. Available at: https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/detoxes-and-cleanses-what-you-need-to-know. Updated September 2019. Accessed on: June 15, 2020.

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

Special populations

Maple Syrup Diet in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy And Lactation Possibly Unsafe

During pregnancy and lactation. The maple syrup diet is not intended to provide adequate nutrition and can result in electrolyte imbalances when used short-term, as well as malnutrition when used long-term.

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

From our Q&A

Questions About Maple Syrup Diet or Cephalexin

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

This page covers Maple Syrup Diet only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Cephalexin page lists 61 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Asarabacca (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), African Wild Potato (moderate) and Aristolochia (moderate).

By severity: 3 major · 47 moderate · 11 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Cephalexin page

“Cephalexin (Keflex) is one of the most commonly prescribed oral antibiotics, usually for skin and urinary infections, and its supplement list warrants genuine care rather than a quick skim. Three of the 61 ingredients on file rate major.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Cephalexin interaction page

How much people look this up

Where Maple Syrup Diet and Cephalexin 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 Maple Syrup Diet
Steady interest

#1,338 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Cephalexin
Top 5%

#139 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 Maple Syrup Diet reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Maple Syrup Diet and Cephalexin records this page draws on were last updated July 10, 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 .
Eating pattern

About Maple Syrup Diet

What is Maple Syrup Diet?

  • Short-term weight loss
  • Body 'detox' or cleanse
  • Jump-starting a diet
  • Quick fasting program

The Maple Syrup Diet (also called the Master Cleanse or Lemonade Diet) is a fad cleanse where you drink a maple syrup, lemon, water, and cayenne mixture instead of eating food for several days. There is no good scientific evidence that it 'detoxes' the body, and any weight lost is mostly water and is usually regained. It can be risky because it provides almost no protein, fat, vitamins, or minerals, so most people should avoid it.

Liquid cleanse drink (a mix of maple syrup, lemon juice, water, and cayenne pepper)

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

Maple Syrup Diet: dosing

There is no medically established or recommended dose for the Maple Syrup Diet, because it is a fad cleanse rather than a proven treatment. Popular versions have people drink several glasses of the maple-lemon-cayenne mixture throughout the day in place of meals.Health experts generally do not recommend this diet at all. A balanced, calorie-controlled eating plan is a far safer and more effective way to lose weight.

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

Read the full Maple Syrup Diet monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Cephalexin

What Is Cephalexin Used For?

Brand names: Keflex, Keftab, Cephalex, Lexin

Cephalexin treats bacterial infections caused by susceptible strains of bacteria. It is used for respiratory tract infections, ear infections (otitis media), skin and skin structure infections, bone infections, and genitourinary tract infections — including acute prostatitis.

It works only against bacterial infections — not viruses like colds or flu. Your prescriber should use it only when a bacterial infection is confirmed or strongly suspected, to help prevent antibiotic resistance.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Cephalexin

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (0 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Chronic kidney disease 2,157 reports
Renal failure 1,558 reports
Acute kidney injury 1,550 reports
Diarrhea 1,405 reports
Fatigue 1,303 reports
See full Cephalexin drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Maple Syrup Diet

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

0Major
0Moderate
0Minor
2,829No known interaction
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list
Evidence & sources

Maple Syrup Diet References

The 2 references that drive our Maple Syrup Diet 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. Kim MJ, Hwang JH, Ko HJ, Na HB, Kim JH. Lemon detox diet reduced body fat, insulin resistance, and serum hs-CRP level without hematological changes in overweight Korean women. Nutr Res. 2015 May;35(5):409-20. PubMed
  2. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. "Detoxes" and "Cleanses": What you need to know. Available at: https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/detoxes-and-cleanses-what-you-need-to-know. Updated September 2019. Accessed on: June 15, 2020.

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

Following Maple Syrup Diet While Taking Cephalexin: Common Questions

Is it safe to follow Maple Syrup Diet while taking Cephalexin?
We do not list a known interaction between Maple Syrup Diet and Cephalexin. 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.
Does Cephalexin interact with any supplements?
Yes. Cephalexin has documented interactions with 61 supplements in our database — Maple Syrup Diet is not one of them. The Cephalexin 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 Cephalexin and Maple Syrup Diet?

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.