Drug & supplement interaction

Pheasant's Eye + Budesonide

Budesonide brand names: Entocort EC, Pulmicort, Uceris, Tarpeyo, Eohilia.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Pheasant's Eye has a moderate interaction with Budesonide. Theoretically, using pheasant's eye with prolonged corticosteroid therapy can cause cardiac glycoside toxicity.

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

Pheasant's Eye and Budesonide

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

Moderate

CORTICOSTEROIDS

Why this applies to Budesonide

Budesonide falls under CORTICOSTEROIDS — the group Pheasant's Eye interacts with.

Theoretically, using pheasant's eye with prolonged corticosteroid therapy can cause cardiac glycoside toxicity.
Pheasant's eye contains cardiac glycosides. Concomitant use of corticosteroids with pheasant's eye can increase the therapeutic and adverse effects of long-term corticosteroid use due to potassium depletion and electrolyte imbalance.
Severity Moderate 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 concern with pairing Pheasant's Eye and budesonide. Budesonide is a steroid, and one thing steroids can do over time is push your potassium levels down. Pheasant's Eye, on the other hand, contains heart-acting compounds (cardiac glycosides) much like the ones in digoxin. When potassium runs low, the heart becomes more sensitive to those compounds, so the combination could theoretically tip you toward heart-rhythm problems, nausea, or that toxic effect we worry about with glycosides.

To be fair, this is a theoretical interaction based on how these substances work, not on strong human studies, and it matters most with long-term, higher-dose steroid use. Still, Pheasant's Eye is genuinely toxic and shouldn't be self-used. Please check with your pharmacist or doctor before combining them.

References
  1. Blumenthal M, ed. The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to Herbal Medicines. Trans. S. Klein. Boston, MA: American Botanical Council, 1998.

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

Pheasant's Eye Also Interacts With Other Medications

Pheasant's Eye has 1 major, 154 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Budesonide 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 Pheasant's Eye

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Pheasant's Eye. Pick one to open its full report.

From our Q&A

Questions About Pheasant's Eye or Budesonide

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Pheasant's Eye or Budesonide, 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 Budesonide

This page covers Pheasant's Eye only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Budesonide page lists 154 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Grapefruit (major), Lily-of-the-valley (major), St. John's Wort (major) and Acacia Rigidula (moderate).

By severity: 4 major · 110 moderate · 40 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Budesonide page

“Budesonide (Entocort EC, Pulmicort, Uceris) is a steroid designed to act locally in the gut or airways while the liver enzyme CYP3A4 clears most of what reaches the bloodstream. That design is exactly why this page warrants real care.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Budesonide interaction page

How much people look this up

Where Pheasant's Eye and Budesonide 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 Pheasant's Eye
Steady interest

#1,098 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Budesonide
Top 25%

#552 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 Pheasant's Eye

What is Pheasant's Eye?

  • Heart failure symptoms
  • Irregular or weak heartbeat
  • Fluid retention (as a diuretic)
  • Nervous heart complaints
  • Mild anxiety with heart palpitations

Pheasant's Eye (Adonis vernalis) is a toxic plant that contains heart-acting compounds similar to those in foxglove. It has been used in traditional and old European medicine for heart problems, but it is poisonous and has a very narrow margin of safety. You should not use it on your own — it should only ever be considered under direct medical supervision, if at all.

Read the full Pheasant's Eye monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Budesonide

What Is Budesonide Used For?

Brand names: Entocort EC, Pulmicort, Uceris, Tarpeyo, Eohilia

Budesonide inhalation suspension is used as a maintenance (long-term control) treatment for asthma in children 12 months to 8 years old. It also works as a preventive (prophylactic) therapy to reduce the frequency of asthma symptoms.

Important: This medication is not a rescue inhaler. It will not stop a sudden asthma attack. A separate fast-acting bronchodilator is needed for sudden symptoms.

See full Budesonide drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Pheasant's Eye

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

1Major
154Moderate
0Minor
2,674No known interaction
Major

1 interaction

Moderate

154 interactions

Showing 60 of 154 moderate interactions — see all 154 on the Pheasant's Eye page.

No interaction 2,674 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 Pheasant's Eye and Budesonide Together: Common Questions

Can you take Pheasant's Eye with Budesonide?
There is a moderate interaction, so it may be acceptable with monitoring or timing changes — but check with your pharmacist first. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
How serious is the Pheasant's Eye and Budesonide interaction?
We rate it Moderate. This combination may require monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one. Consult your pharmacist before using them together.

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

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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.