Drug & supplement interaction

Red Sandalwood + Bexarotene

Bexarotene brand name: Targretin.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated June 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 13, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene 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 Bexarotene states a food rule worth keeping to.

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Interaction report

Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene

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 Bexarotene and Red Sandalwood 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.

Red Sandalwood safety at a glance

Red Sandalwood overall Use caution Limited human safety data exists, so use carefully and prefer external uses unless guided by a professional.
Pregnancy Avoid Safety during pregnancy is not established, so it is best avoided.
Breastfeeding Avoid Safety while breastfeeding is unknown, so avoiding it is the safer choice.

Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Bexarotene and Red Sandalwood? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
How we checked

Why No Interaction Is Listed for Bexarotene

Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes, not just single drug names. Bexarotene is filed under 3 classifications — retinoids, cytochrome p450 3a4 (cyp3a4) substrates, oral drugs. Red Sandalwood has documented interactions with 2 drug classes — the most serious being antidiabetes drugs (moderate) and lithium (moderate) — and none of Bexarotene’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

Red Sandalwood Does Interact With Other Medications

Red Sandalwood has 87 moderate known drug interactions in our database — Bexarotene isn’t one of them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Moderate 87 No known interaction 2,743 (incl. Bexarotene)
Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Red Sandalwood

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

What to actually watch for

What Bexarotene’s Own FDA Label Lists

This is not an interaction — none of it involves Red Sandalwood. These are the most notable effects listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of Bexarotene’s own FDA label, for the medication by itself. Knowing the drug’s own list makes it easier to work out the likely cause if something new turns up while you take both. 10 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Loss of vision Worth acting on
  • A change in thyroid levels Worth acting on
  • A stroke or mini-stroke Worth acting on
  • Pain or burning when passing urine Worth acting on
  • High potassium Worth acting on
  • Low sodium Worth acting on
  • Unsteadiness Worth acting on
  • Low blood sugar Worth acting on
  • Pancreatitis Worth acting on
  • Heart failure Worth acting on

Showing the 10 most notable of 60 label-listed effects — ranked by how unusual each one is across medicines generally, with serious effects weighted up.

From the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Bexarotene. Read the label on DailyMed › Red Sandalwood’s licensed record lists no adverse effects our clinical vocabulary could match, so there is no Red Sandalwood side to compare — that is a limit of the record, not a statement that Red Sandalwood has no side effects.

How to take them

Some Bexarotene Products Have a Food Rule — Red Sandalwood Should Not Break It

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

TARGRETIN should be taken as a single oral daily dose with a meal.

From the Dosage and Administration section of the FDA label we read for Bexarotene — 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.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Bexarotene

This page covers Red Sandalwood only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Bexarotene page lists 139 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Grapefruit (major), St. John's Wort (major), Vitamin A (major) and Acacia Rigidula (moderate).

By severity: 4 major · 94 moderate · 41 minor.

Open the Bexarotene interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 7 real supplement products containing Red Sandalwood, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Red Sandalwood. Even though Red Sandalwood itself has no known interaction with Bexarotene, 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 Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene 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 Red Sandalwood
Top half

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

29 days ago today
Medication Bexarotene
Steady interest

#2,119 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 Red Sandalwood reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 13, 2026. The Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene records this page draws on were last updated June 22, 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 Red Sandalwood

What is Red Sandalwood?

  • Skin care and complexion
  • Acne and skin blemishes
  • Inflammation and minor wounds
  • Digestive complaints (traditional use)
  • Coloring and flavoring agent

Red Sandalwood (Pterocarpus santalinus) is a hardwood used in traditional medicine and in skin and cosmetic preparations, valued for its red pigment and astringent properties. Solid human evidence for its health benefits is very limited, and most claims come from traditional use or laboratory studies. If you want to try it, talk with your pharmacist or doctor first, especially before taking it internally.

Pterocarpus santalinus · Fabaceae · Heartwood (and wood powder/extract) · Wood powder, paste, decoctions, extracts, and as an ingredient in skin and cosmetic preparations

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

Red Sandalwood: dosing

There is no well-established standard dose for Red Sandalwood. Traditional preparations vary widely, and modern clinical dosing has not been defined.If you use a commercial product, follow the directions on the label and do not exceed the recommended amount.

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

Read the full Red Sandalwood monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Bexarotene

What Is Bexarotene Used For?

Brand name: Targretin

Bexarotene capsules (brands: Bexarotene, Targretin) are used to treat the skin symptoms of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) in patients whose disease has not responded to at least one prior systemic treatment.

Bexarotene gel 1% (brands: Bexarotene, Targretin) is used to treat the skin lesions of early-stage CTCL (Stage IA and IB) when other therapies have not worked or could not be tolerated. The gel is a topical therapy and is not intended for systemic use.

See full Bexarotene drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Red Sandalwood

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

0Major
87Moderate
0Minor
2,742No known interaction
87 Moderate 2,742 No interaction
Moderate

87 interactions

Showing 60 of 87 moderate interactions — see all 87 on the Red Sandalwood page.

No interaction 2,742 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,742 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Red Sandalwood list.

See the full Red Sandalwood interactions page
See every supplement checked against Bexarotene, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Red Sandalwood References

The 1 references that drive our Red Sandalwood 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. El-Badawy RE, Ibrahim KA, Hassan NS, El-Sayed WM. Pterocarpus santalinus ameliorates streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus via anti-inflammatory pathways and enhancement of insulin function. Iran J Basic Med Sci 2019;22(8):932-939.

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 Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene Together: Common Questions

Is it safe to take Red Sandalwood with Bexarotene?
We do not list a known interaction between Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene. 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.
Should I take Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene at the same time of day?
At least one FDA label for a product containing Bexarotene says to take it with food. If you take Red Sandalwood on an empty stomach out of habit, keep them separate and take Bexarotene with a meal where the label says to. Food instructions belong to the product rather than the ingredient — two Bexarotene products can differ — so check the directions on your own box. This is about absorption, not an interaction.
How was the Red Sandalwood and Bexarotene combination checked?
Interactions in our licensed database are recorded against drug classes. Bexarotene is filed under 3 classifications, and Red Sandalwood has documented interactions with 2 drug classes — none of Bexarotene'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 Red Sandalwood interact with any other medications?
Yes. Red Sandalwood has 87 documented drug interactions in our database — Bexarotene 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 Bexarotene interact with any supplements?
Yes. Bexarotene has documented interactions with 139 supplements in our database — Red Sandalwood is not one of them. The Bexarotene 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

Red Sandalwood monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Bexarotene drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Bexarotene supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Bexarotene, 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 1 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Bexarotene and Red Sandalwood?

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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.