Drug & supplement interaction

Vitamin A + Warfarin Sodium

Warfarin Sodium brand names: Coumadin, Panwarfin, Sofarin.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Vitamin A has a moderate interaction with Warfarin Sodium. Theoretically, high doses of vitamin A could increase the risk of bleeding with warfarin.

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

Vitamin A and Warfarin Sodium

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

Moderate

WARFARIN (Coumadin)

Theoretically, high doses of vitamin A could increase the risk of bleeding with warfarin.
Vitamin A toxicity is associated with hemorrhage and hypoprothrombinemia, possibly due to vitamin K antagonism. Advise patients taking warfarin to avoid doses of vitamin A above the tolerable upper intake level of 10,000 IU/day for adults.
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 gist for your warfarin: in normal amounts, vitamin A from food or a regular multivitamin isn't a concern. The worry only shows up with very high supplement doses. When vitamin A builds up to toxic levels, it seems to work against vitamin K, which is the very clotting factor your warfarin already lowers. Stacking those effects could thin your blood more than intended.

For you that means a higher chance of bleeding, things like easy bruising, nosebleeds, bleeding gums, or blood in your urine or stool. Warfarin is a touchy drug where small shifts matter, so this is worth respecting. I'd avoid vitamin A above 10,000 IU a day, and chat with your pharmacist or doctor before adding any new supplement.

References
  1. Hardman JG, Limbird LL, Molinoff PB, eds. Goodman and Gillman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 9th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 1996.

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

Vitamin A Also Interacts With Other Medications

Vitamin A has 9 major, 379 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Warfarin Sodium 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 Vitamin A

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

From our Q&A

Questions About Vitamin A or Warfarin Sodium

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Vitamin A or Warfarin Sodium, 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 Warfarin Sodium

This page covers Vitamin A only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Warfarin Sodium page lists 361 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Alfalfa (major), American Ginseng (major), Beer (major) and Cannabis (major).

Open the Warfarin Sodium interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Vitamin A as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 19,215 real supplement products containing Vitamin A, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Vitamin A. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Warfarin Sodium too, on top of Vitamin A — 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 Vitamin A and Warfarin Sodium 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 Vitamin A
Top 10

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

29 days ago today
Medication Warfarin Sodium
Top 5%

#30 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 Vitamin A

What is Vitamin A?

  • Eye and vision health
  • Skin health and acne
  • Immune support
  • Correcting vitamin A deficiency
  • Childhood growth and development

Vitamin A is an essential nutrient important for vision, skin, immune function, and growth. Most people get enough from a balanced diet, and supplements are mainly useful for correcting a true deficiency. Because vitamin A is fat-soluble and can build up to harmful levels, more is not better, and high doses are especially risky in pregnancy.

Read the full Vitamin A monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Warfarin

What Is Warfarin Used For?

Brand names: Coumadin, Panwarfin, Sofarin

Warfarin helps prevent and treat harmful blood clots. The label lists these uses for both Warfarin Sodium tablets and Jantoven tablets:

  • Preventing and treating venous thrombosis (clots in the veins) and pulmonary embolism (clots in the lungs).
  • Preventing and treating clot-related complications of atrial fibrillation and/or heart valve replacement.
  • Lowering the risk of death, another heart attack, and clot-related events such as stroke after a heart attack.

Warfarin does not dissolve a clot that has already formed. It helps stop the clot from growing and prevents further clot-related complications.

See full Warfarin drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Vitamin A

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

9Major
379Moderate
0Minor
2,441No known interaction
Major

9 interactions

Moderate

379 interactions

Showing 60 of 379 moderate interactions — see all 379 on the Vitamin A page.

No interaction 2,441 drugs checked — show the list

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

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,441 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Vitamin A 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

Keep exploring
Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Vitamin A and Warfarin Sodium Together: Common Questions

Can you take Vitamin A with Warfarin Sodium?
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 Vitamin A and Warfarin Sodium 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.