Drug & supplement interaction

Uva Ursi + Digoxin

Digoxin brand names: Lanoxicaps, Lanoxin, Digitek.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Digoxin falls into 2 drug categories that Uva Ursi can interact with; the most serious is rated moderate. Theoretically, uva ursi may increase levels of drugs metabolized by glucuronidation.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityModerate
LikelihoodPossible
Interactions2
EvidenceD
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Uva Ursi and Digoxin

These two interact in 2 distinct ways. Each one is explained separately below.

Why Are There 2 Interactions?

Uva Ursi interacts with whole categories of medication. Digoxin falls into 2 of those categories, so it can interact with Uva Ursi in 2 different ways. We’ve listed each one below — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them (Moderate).

Moderate

GLUCURONIDATED DRUGS

1 of 2

Why this applies to Digoxin

Digoxin falls under GLUCURONIDATED DRUGS — the group Uva Ursi interacts with.

Theoretically, uva ursi may increase levels of drugs metabolized by glucuronidation.
In vitro, uva ursi extract appears to strongly inhibit UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) 1A1 (UGT1A1). However, uva ursi extract does not appear to inhibit UGT1A1 in animal models. This effect has not been reported in humans.
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 honest picture with uva ursi and your digoxin. The concern on file is that uva ursi might slow down a liver pathway called glucuronidation, which in theory could let certain drugs build up. But this signal only showed up in test-tube studies. In live animal models, uva ursi didn't actually block that pathway, and it has never been reported as a problem in people.

On top of that, digoxin isn't cleared mainly by glucuronidation, so this particular mechanism doesn't fit digoxin well. Still, digoxin is a narrow margin drug, meaning small changes can tip you toward nausea, appetite loss, visual halos, or a slow or irregular heartbeat. So please check with your pharmacist or doctor before combining them, especially since uva ursi is only meant for short-term use.

References
  1. Park JB, Kim D, Min JS, et al. Identification and characterization of in vitro inhibitors against UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1A1 in uva-ursi extracts and evaluation of in vivo uva-ursi-drug interactions. Food Chem Toxicol. 2018;120:651-661. PubMed
Minor

P-GLYCOPROTEIN SUBSTRATES

2 of 2

Digoxin also falls under P-GLYCOPROTEIN SUBSTRATES.

Theoretically, uva ursi may alter the levels of drugs transported by P-glycoprotein.
In vitro, uva ursi appears to inhibit the multi-drug transporter protein, P-glycoprotein. This effect has not been reported in humans.
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 the gist with digoxin and uva ursi. Digoxin is moved through and out of your body by a transporter pump called P-glycoprotein. In a lab dish, uva ursi seemed to slow that pump down. If that happened in a real person, less digoxin would get pushed out, so blood levels could creep up a bit. Since digoxin has a very narrow safety window, even small bumps can matter, leading to things like nausea, loss of appetite, blurred or yellow-tinged vision, or a slow or irregular heartbeat.

That said, this is only a theoretical, test-tube finding and hasn't been seen in people. I wouldn't lose sleep over it, but please run it by your pharmacist or doctor before adding uva ursi.

References
  1. Chauhan B, Yu C, Krantis A, et al. In vitro activity of uva-ursi against cytochrome P450 isoenzymes and P-glycoprotein. Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2007;85(11):1099-107.

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

Uva Ursi Also Interacts With Other Medications

Uva Ursi has 739 moderate, 63 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Digoxin one above is among them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Uva Ursi

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

From our Q&A

Questions About Uva Ursi or Digoxin

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

This page covers Uva Ursi only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Digoxin page lists 113 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Aloe (major), Blue Flag (major), Danshen (major) and European Buckthorn (major).

By severity: 18 major · 79 moderate · 16 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Digoxin page

“Digoxin is a heart medicine with a narrow therapeutic index, meaning the gap between a helpful blood level and a harmful one is small, and few drugs give me more pause when supplements enter the picture. The most serious entries here are herbs that themselves contain digoxin-like cardiac glycosides, foxglove and lily-of-the-valley amon…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Digoxin interaction page

One more smart check

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

We hold 1,423 real supplement products containing Uva Ursi, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Uva Ursi. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Digoxin too, on top of Uva Ursi — 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 Uva Ursi and Digoxin 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 Uva Ursi
Top 25%

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

29 days ago today
Medication Digoxin
Top 25%

#593 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 Uva Ursi

What is Uva Ursi?

Uva Ursi
  • Urinary tract infections
  • Urinary discomfort
  • Mild diuretic
  • Kidney stones
  • Skin conditions

Uva ursi is a traditional herb used mainly for urinary tract infections, and its leaves contain a compound called arbutin that may have antimicrobial effects in the urine. Evidence in people is limited, and because high doses or long-term use may be harmful to the liver and could be toxic, it should only be used short-term and with guidance from a healthcare professional. Avoid it during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Read the full Uva Ursi monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Digoxin

What Is Digoxin Used For?

Brand names: Lanoxicaps, Lanoxin, Digitek

Digoxin tablets, oral solution, and injections (including Lanoxin brand) are all approved to treat mild to moderate heart failure in adults — improving symptoms like exercise tolerance and reducing hospitalizations, though it does not extend life. It is also approved to control the resting ventricular rate (how fast the lower chambers beat) in adults with chronic atrial fibrillation. The oral solution specifically notes it should not be used for multifocal atrial tachycardia.

In children with heart failure, digoxin is used to strengthen the heart's contractions (increase myocardial contractility). Digoxin is best used alongside a diuretic (water pill) and an ACE inhibitor when possible.

See full Digoxin drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Uva Ursi

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

0Major
739Moderate
63Minor
2,027No known interaction
Moderate

739 interactions

Showing 60 of 739 moderate interactions — see all 739 on the Uva Ursi page.

Minor

63 interactions

Showing 60 of 63 minor interactions — see all 63 on the Uva Ursi page.

No interaction 2,027 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 Uva Ursi and Digoxin Together: Common Questions

Can you take Uva Ursi with Digoxin?
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.
Why are there 2 interactions listed for Uva Ursi and Digoxin?
Digoxin belongs to more than one drug category, and Uva Ursi interacts with each of those categories a little differently. We list every one so nothing is missed — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them.
How serious is the Uva Ursi and Digoxin 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

Still Have a Question About Digoxin and Uva Ursi?

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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.