Drug & supplement interaction

Saccharomyces Boulardii + Tolnaftate

Tolnaftate brand name: Tinactin.

Minor Interaction
The bottom line Minor

Saccharomyces Boulardii has a minor interaction with Tolnaftate. Theoretically, taking antifungals with Saccharomyces boulardii might decrease the effectiveness of Saccharomyces boulardii.

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

Saccharomyces Boulardii and Tolnaftate

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

Minor

ANTIFUNGALS

Why this applies to Tolnaftate

Tolnaftate falls under ANTIFUNGALS — the group Saccharomyces Boulardii interacts with.

Theoretically, taking antifungals with Saccharomyces boulardii might decrease the effectiveness of Saccharomyces boulardii.
S. boulardii is a live yeast. Therefore, simultaneously taking antifungals might kill a significant number of the organisms.
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 a nice bit of good news for you. Tolnaftate (Tinactin) is a topical antifungal, meaning you rub it on the skin to clear up things like athlete's foot, jock itch, or ringworm. Saccharomyces boulardii, on the other hand, is a probiotic yeast you swallow that works down in your gut. These two are doing their jobs in completely different places in the body.

The interaction on file is the theoretical idea that an antifungal could kill off this beneficial yeast and make the probiotic less effective. But that worry really applies to antifungals taken by mouth. Since tolnaftate stays on your skin and isn't meaningfully absorbed, it shouldn't reach the yeast in your gut. I wouldn't lose sleep over this one, but feel free to confirm with your pharmacist.

References
  1. Lewis SJ, Freedman AR. Review article: the use of biotherapeutic agents in the prevention and treatment of gastrointestinal disease. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 1998;12:807-22. 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

Saccharomyces Boulardii Also Interacts With Other Medications

Saccharomyces Boulardii has 39 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Tolnaftate 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 Saccharomyces Boulardii

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

From our Q&A

Questions About Saccharomyces Boulardii or Tolnaftate

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

This page covers Saccharomyces Boulardii only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Tolnaftate page lists 20 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Coffee Charcoal (moderate), European Mandrake (moderate), Glucomannan (moderate) and Guar Gum (moderate).

By severity: 1 major · 7 moderate · 12 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Tolnaftate page

“For anyone using tolnaftate (Tinactin), the antifungal in athlete's foot creams and sprays, activated charcoal is the interaction to understand before all others. It holds the only major rating among the 20 ingredients on file, since charcoal binds many medicines and can lower how much reaches the body, even drugs not given by mouth.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Tolnaftate interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 608 real supplement products containing Saccharomyces Boulardii, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Saccharomyces Boulardii. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Tolnaftate too, on top of Saccharomyces Boulardii — 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 Saccharomyces Boulardii and Tolnaftate 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 Saccharomyces Boulardii
Top 25%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Tolnaftate
Steady interest

#2,290 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 Saccharomyces Boulardii

What is Saccharomyces Boulardii?

Saccharomyces Boulardii
  • Acute diarrhea
  • Antibiotic-associated diarrhea
  • Traveler's diarrhea
  • Preventing C. difficile recurrence
  • General gut health

Saccharomyces boulardii is a beneficial yeast used as a probiotic, with the strongest evidence for preventing and treating certain types of diarrhea, including antibiotic-associated diarrhea. It is generally well tolerated in healthy people, but those who are seriously ill or have weakened immune systems should avoid it because of rare but serious bloodstream infections. Talk with your pharmacist or doctor before starting it.

Read the full Saccharomyces Boulardii monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Tolnaftate

What Is Tolnaftate Used For?

Brand name: Tinactin

Tolnaftate treats common fungal skin infections — specifically athlete's foot (tinea pedis), jock itch (tinea cruris), and ringworm (tinea corporis). It also helps relieve the itching, cracking, burning, scaling, redness, and soreness that come with these infections.

Several products also help prevent athlete's foot from coming back with regular daily use. Note that tolnaftate is not effective on the scalp or nails — though some patch products are applied around the nail and cuticle area to address skin surrounding the nail.

See full Tolnaftate drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Saccharomyces Boulardii

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

0Major
0Moderate
39Minor
2,790No known interaction
Minor

39 interactions

No interaction 2,790 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 Saccharomyces Boulardii and Tolnaftate Together: Common Questions

Can you take Saccharomyces Boulardii with Tolnaftate?
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 Saccharomyces Boulardii and Tolnaftate 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 Tolnaftate and Saccharomyces Boulardii?

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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.