Star Anise + Tofacitinib
Tofacitinib brand names: Xeljanz, Xeljanz XR.
We found no known interaction between Star Anise and Tofacitinib 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 two are separately associated with some of the same side effects, which would make a new symptom harder to attribute to one or the other.
Star Anise and Tofacitinib
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 Tofacitinib and Star Anise 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.
Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Star Anise at all — not against Tofacitinib, 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.
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.
Star Anise safety at a glance
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.
Star Anise in Pregnancy & Breastfeeding
When used orally in amounts commonly found in foods.
When star anise is used orally as a tea. In 2003, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an advisory to the public not to consume teas brewed from star anise, as they have been associated with adverse neurological and gastrointestinal effects.
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
See Every Supplement That Interacts With Tofacitinib
This page covers Star Anise only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Tofacitinib page lists 184 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), Acacia Rigidula (moderate) and Active Hexose Correlated Compound (ahcc) (moderate).
By severity: 3 major · 143 moderate · 38 minor.
From our pharmacist’s overview on the Tofacitinib page
“Supplements deserve genuine care alongside tofacitinib (Xeljanz, Xeljanz XR), a medicine that deliberately dials down the immune system to control conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and ulcerative colitis. Most of the interactions on this page run through the liver enzymes that clear the drug, meaning an herb can push its blood level…”
Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026
Taking Star Anise as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions
We hold 126 real supplement products containing Star Anise, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Star Anise. Even though Star Anise itself has no known interaction with Tofacitinib, another ingredient on your label might. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:
Where Star Anise and Tofacitinib 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.
#987 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days
#938 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days
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 Star Anise reference on this page ↓
- Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Star Anise and Tofacitinib 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.
About Star Anise
What is Star Anise?
- Digestive upset and gas
- Cough and respiratory complaints
- Antimicrobial
- Flavoring food and drinks
- Source of shikimic acid for medicine manufacturing
Star anise (Illicium verum) is a star-shaped spice widely used in cooking and traditional medicine, mostly for digestive and respiratory complaints. Human evidence for health benefits is limited, and its main proven importance is as an industrial source of shikimic acid used to make antiviral medicine. Use the culinary Chinese star anise cautiously, avoid the toxic Japanese star anise look-alike, and check with your pharmacist before using supplements.
Illicium verum · Schisandraceae · Dried ripe fruit (the star-shaped seed pods) and essential oil · Whole or ground spice, tea, capsules, extracts, and essential oil
An interaction check asks whether these two react with each other — it does not ask whether Star Anise is a good idea for someone in your situation. Here is what our Star Anise record says about it on its own.
Star Anise: dosing
There is no well-established standard medicinal dose for star anise. It is most commonly used as a culinary spice or as a mild tea made from the whole star.If you use a supplement, capsule, or extract, follow the directions on the product label and do not exceed them.
From our Star Anise monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.
About Tofacitinib
What Is Tofacitinib Used For?
Brand names: Xeljanz, Xeljanz XR
-
Tofacitinib is used alone or with other medications to treat rheumatoid arthritis (condition in which the body attacks its own joints causing pain, swelling, and loss of function) in adults who are unable to take or did not respond to one or more tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor medication(s). It is also used to treat psoriatic arthritis (a condition that causes joint pain and swelling and scales on the skin) in adults who are unable to take or did not respond to or tolerate one or more TNF inhibitor medication(s). Tofacitinib is used to treat ulcerative colitis (a condition which causes swelling and sores in the lining of the colon [large intestine] and rectum) in adults who are unable to take or who did not respond to one or more TNF inhibitor medication(s). It is also used to treat polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (PJIA; a type of childhood arthritis that affects five or more joints during the first six months of the condition, causing pain, swelling, and loss of function) in children 2 years and older who are unable to take or who did not respond to one or more TNF inhibitor medication(s). Tofacitinib is in a class of medications called Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. It works by decreasing the activity of the immune system.
Other Drugs & Star Anise
Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Star Anise — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.
No drugs match “”.
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list
We also checked Star Anise against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.
- Apixaban ›
- Levothyroxine ›
- Amlodipine ›
- Methylphenidate ›
- Warfarin ›
- Sertraline ›
- Losartan Potassium ›
- Testosterone ›
- Ivermectin ›
- Aspirin ›
- Abemaciclib ›
- Acetaminophen ›
- Metoprolol ›
- Rosuvastatin ›
- Rivaroxaban ›
- Escitalopram ›
- Clopidogrel ›
- Atorvastatin ›
- Docusate ›
- Tadalafil ›
- Tirzepatide ›
- Methamphetamine ›
- Ibuprofen ›
- Valacyclovir ›
- Warfarin Sodium ›
- Hydroxyurea ›
- Sumatriptan ›
- Semaglutide ›
- Prednisone ›
- Lisdexamfetamine ›
- Propranolol ›
- Metformin ›
- Amitriptyline ›
- Amoxicillin ›
- Lisinopril ›
- Isotretinoin ›
- Amlodipine Besylate ›
- Methotrexate ›
- Bendamustine ›
- Bupropion ›
- Amphetamine ›
- Doxycycline ›
- Fluoxetine ›
- Acyclovir ›
- Azithromycin ›
- Pregabalin ›
- Lamotrigine ›
- Dextroamphetamine ›
- Gabapentin ›
- Acetaminophen, Codeine ›
- Levothyroxine, Liothyronine ›
- Clonazepam ›
- Quetiapine ›
- Naproxen ›
- Omeprazole ›
- Letrozole ›
- Duloxetine ›
- Methylene Blue ›
- Buspirone ›
- Citalopram ›
Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,829 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Star Anise list.
Star Anise References
The 10 references that drive our Star Anise 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.
- Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. Title 21. Part 182 -- Substances Generally Recognized As Safe. Available at: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?CFRPart=182
- Anon. FDA issue advisory on star anise "teas." FDA News P03-67; September 10, 2003.
- Ize-Ludlow D, Ragone S, Bernstein JN, et al. Chemical composition of Chinese star anise (Illicium verum) and neurotoxicity in infants. JAMA 2004;291:562-3. PubMed
- Ize-Ludlow D, Ragone S, Bruck IS, et al. Neurotoxicities in infants seen with the consumption of star anise tea. Pediatrics 2004;114:e653-6. PubMed
- Franks A. Contact allergy to anethole in toothpaste associated with loss of taste. Contact Dermatitis 1998;38:354-5. PubMed
- Rudzki E, Grzywa Z. Sensitizing and irritating properties of star anise oil. Contact Dermatitis 1976;2:305-8. PubMed
- Garzo, Fernandez C., Gomez, Pintado P., Barrasa, Blanco A., Martinez, Arrieta R., Ramirez, Fernandez R., and Ramon, Rosa F. [Cases of neurological symptoms associated with star anise consumption used as a carminative]. An.Esp.Pediatr. 2002;57(4):290-294.
- Minodier, P., Pommier, P., Moulene, E., Retornaz, K., Prost, N., and Deharo, L. [Star anise poisoning in infants]. Arch Pediatr. 2003;10(7):619-621.
- Casanova Cuenca M, Calzado Agrasot MÁ, Mir Pegueroles C, Esteban Cantó V. New cases of star anise poisoning: Are we providing enough information? Neurologia. 2019;34(3):211-213. DOI
- Donner J, Ruest S. Neonate with seizures after consuming star anise tea. R I Med J. 2021 Oct 1;104(8):8-10.
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.
Taking Star Anise and Tofacitinib Together: Common Questions
Is it safe to take Star Anise with Tofacitinib?
Do Star Anise and Tofacitinib have any of the same side effects?
Does Tofacitinib interact with any supplements?
Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy
Keep Exploring
Still Have a Question About Tofacitinib and Star Anise?
Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.
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.