Drug & supplement interaction

Maqui + Acarbose

Acarbose brand names: Precose, Prandase, Glucobay.

Minor Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated September 2026
The bottom line Minor

Maqui has a minor interaction with Acarbose. Theoretically, maqui fruit extract may increase the risk of hypoglycemia when used with antidiabetes drugs.

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

Maqui and Acarbose

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

Minor

ANTIDIABETES DRUGS

Why this applies to Acarbose

Acarbose falls under ANTIDIABETES DRUGS — the group Maqui interacts with.

Theoretically, maqui fruit extract may increase the risk of hypoglycemia when used with antidiabetes drugs.
Animal research shows that maqui berry reduces fasting blood glucose. However, maqui berry extract taken orally, either as a single dose or daily for 3 months, does not decrease fasting blood glucose in prediabetic patients. It is unknown whether it might reduce blood glucose levels in patients with diabetes.
Severity Minor Likelihood Possible Evidence B

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 simple version when it comes to pairing maqui with acarbose. Both work toward the same goal of lowering blood sugar, so the worry is that stacking them could push your numbers a little too low. Acarbose itself rarely causes low blood sugar when used alone, but combining diabetes treatments can add up.

Honestly, though, the evidence here is thin and mostly theoretical. Animal studies showed lower fasting sugar, but in actual people with prediabetes, maqui didn't drop fasting glucose at all. Eating the berry as a food is very unlikely to matter. If you want to try a concentrated supplement, just check with your pharmacist or doctor first and keep an eye out for shakiness, sweating, or dizziness.

Contact Dr. Brian directly if you have additional questions on this interaction
References
  1. Alvarado JL, Leschot A, Olivera-Nappa Á, et al. Delphinidin-rich maqui berry extract (Delphinol®) lowers fasting and postprandial glycemia and insulinemia in prediabetic individuals during oral glucose tolerance tests. Biomed Res Int. 2016;2016:9070537. PubMed
  2. Alvarado J, Schoenlau F, Leschot A, Salgad AM, Vigil Portales P. Delphinol® standardized maqui berry extract significantly lowers blood glucose and improves blood lipid profile in prediabetic individuals in three-month clinical trial. Panminerva Med. 2016
  3. Hidalgo J, Flores C, Hidalgo MA, et al. Delphinol® standardized maqui berry extract reduces postprandial blood glucose increase in individuals with impaired glucose regulation by novel mechanism of sodium glucose cotransporter inhibition. Panminerva Med.

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

Maqui Also Interacts With Other Medications

Maqui has 85 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Acarbose one above is one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Minor 85 No known interaction 2,745 (incl. Acarbose)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Maqui

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

From our Q&A

Questions About Maqui or Acarbose

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

This page covers Maqui only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Acarbose page lists 281 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Beer (major), Siberian Cocklebur (major), Wine (major) and Acai (moderate).

By severity: 4 major · 240 moderate · 37 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Acarbose page

“Acarbose (Precose, Glucobay) is taken with meals to blunt the blood sugar rise after eating, and its supplement list calls for genuine care, starting with the four major-rated entries: heavy alcohol and the herb Siberian cocklebur can strain the liver alongside acarbose, while activated charcoal can soak up oral drugs and cut what reac…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Acarbose interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 388 real supplement products containing Maqui, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Maqui. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Acarbose too, on top of Maqui — 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 Maqui and Acarbose 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 Maqui
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Acarbose
Top 5%

#77 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 Maqui

What is Maqui?

  • Antioxidant support
  • Blood sugar support
  • Eye health and dry eye
  • Anti-inflammatory support
  • Heart health

Maqui is a dark purple berry from Chile that is very rich in antioxidant plant pigments called anthocyanins. Early research suggests it may help with things like blood sugar, dry eye, and inflammation, but the human evidence is still limited and far from proven. It is generally well tolerated as a food, but talk with your pharmacist or doctor before using concentrated supplements.

Read the full Maqui monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Acarbose

What Is Acarbose Used For?

Brand names: Precose, Prandase, Glucobay

Acarbose tablets are used to help manage blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes. It is always used together with a proper diet and regular exercise — not as a replacement for them.

Acarbose can be used on its own or combined with other diabetes medicines, such as sulfonylureas, insulin, or metformin, to further improve blood sugar control.

See full Acarbose drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Maqui

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

0Major
0Moderate
85Minor
2,744No known interaction
85 Minor 2,744 No interaction
Minor

85 interactions

Showing 60 of 85 minor interactions — see all 85 on the Maqui page.

No interaction 2,744 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,744 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Maqui list.

See the full Maqui interactions page
See every supplement checked against Acarbose, ranked by severity
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

Keep exploring
Maqui monograph › Uses, safety, and every drug interaction in one place Acarbose supplement interactions › Every supplement checked against Acarbose, ranked by severity Acarbose drug information › The full plain-English guide to this medication Supplement interaction checker › Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z › Every drug we've checked against herbs & supplements Ask a pharmacist › Free, personal answer from our licensed team
Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Maqui and Acarbose Together: Common Questions

Can you take Maqui with Acarbose?
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 Maqui and Acarbose 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 Acarbose and Maqui?

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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.