Herb & supplement monograph

Belladonna Drug Interactions, Uses, Effectiveness, Safety & More

Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS ·Updated July 2026

What is this page for?

First and foremost: how Belladonna interacts with medications. The heart of this page is the interaction list — every drug Belladonna is known to interact with, and how serious each one is.

But these pages have grown well beyond that into a full monograph — what Belladonna is, what people use it for and how strong the evidence is, its safety and side effects, and answers to the questions we’re asked most — written and reviewed by the clinical staff at HelloPharmacist. It’s educational information from our licensed clinical databases, not medical advice, and we don’t sell or endorse products. Our editorial policy

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On this page

Belladonna Drug Interactions: The Bottom Line

From the HelloPharmacist Editorial Team · Updated July 2026

Based on the available evidence, the overall risk of a clinically significant Belladonna drug interaction is moderate, so this plant calls for real caution when combined with many common medications. None of the listed interactions are rated major, but every single one is rated moderate, with none considered minor.

Interactions deserving the most attention

Anticholinergic drugs deserve the most attention: belladonna itself has anticholinergic activity, so taking it with these medicines can stack the same effects and raise the chance of side effects, and this concern is reasonably well supported. There is also a theoretical concern that the atropine in belladonna could work against cisapride, a medicine used to speed up the gut, making it less effective. That second concern rests on limited evidence, but it could matter for someone who relies on the drug working properly.

What the rest of the list means

The long list of moderate interactions largely reflects one shared issue: a great many medications have anticholinergic effects, and belladonna adds to them. That does not mean every combination will cause harm, but the concern here comes from how belladonna itself acts in the body, not just from lab predictions, which is why we do not consider this list purely theoretical.

Check your medications against Belladonna

Based on HelloPharmacist’s Belladonna interaction data and reviewed under our editorial standards.

Interaction report

Drugs that interact with Belladonna

196 medications have a known interaction with Belladonna, graded by severity. Select any drug for the full evidence-based detail.

Don’t want to scroll the list? Just ask.

Tell us the medications you take and we’ll check each one against Belladonna using our pharmacist-reviewed interaction data.

AI summaries are generated from our Belladonna interaction data for education only — always confirm with your pharmacist. How we use AI

2,830 drugs

Read The List Like a Pharmacist

What Severity, Likelihood & Evidence Mean

Severity — How Serious It Can Be

Major. Clinically significant; generally best avoided, or used only under direct professional supervision.
Moderate. May need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one.
Minor. Generally not clinically significant, but still worth noting and mentioning to your pharmacist.
No known interaction. Checked against our sources with nothing documented — not the same as proven safety.

Likelihood — How Well It’s Documented

Likely. Well-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction
Probable. Interaction 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.
Possible. 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
Unlikely. Interaction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.

Where This Data Comes From

Interaction records are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database (TRC Healthcare), the same reference used by pharmacists and hospitals.
Each drug listed above links to the full report for that exact Belladonna combination — clinical detail, likelihood, evidence level, and citations.
Content is reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

The big picture

The kinds of drugs Belladonna affects

Every type of medication (drug category) Belladonna is known to interact with. Open any category for the detail — or search your exact drug in the checker above.

All 2 drug categories Belladonna interacts with

Anticholinergic DrugsCisapride (propulsid)

Anticholinergic Drugs

Belladonna may increase the risk of adverse effects when used concomitantly with anticholinergic drugs.
Belladonna has anticholinergic activity and increases the activity of anticholinergic drugs.

Likelihood Probable Evidence D

Cisapride (Propulsid)

Theoretically, belladonna might reduce the effects of cisapride.
Belladonna contains atropine. In vivo evidence suggests that atropine can prevent cisapride from increasing motility in the gastrointestinal tract.

Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Monograph

Belladonna: Uses, Safety & Side Effects

Medically reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS · Reviewed July 2026 ·

The bottom line

Belladonna is a highly toxic plant whose alkaloids (like atropine and scopolamine) are powerful medicines used only in carefully controlled, regulated forms. The raw plant and unregulated products can cause serious poisoning, and homeopathic versions have little proof of benefit. Never self-treat with belladonna without guidance from a doctor or pharmacist.

Scientific name: Atropa belladonna
Family: Solanaceae
Part used: Leaves, roots, and berries
Common forms: Homeopathic tablets and pellets, tinctures, topical plasters, and standardized prescription alkaloid extracts

People commonly use it for

Digestive cramps and spasms
Cold and flu symptoms (homeopathic)
Teething pain (homeopathic)
Motion sickness and nausea
Excess sweating or secretions
Pain and muscle spasm (topical plasters)

Popular and traditional uses — not proof it works. See “Uses & effectiveness” below for the evidence.

Safety at a glance

OverallBest avoided

Belladonna is poisonous and unsafe to take on your own outside of regulated, professionally supervised products.

PregnancyBest avoided

Avoid during pregnancy because belladonna's alkaloids are toxic and effects on the baby are not established.

BreastfeedingLikely Unsafe

When used orally. Belladonna can reduce milk production and is secreted into breast milk.

Read the full breastfeeding detail

Pregnancy & breastfeeding ratings are from Natural Medicines (Therapeutic Research Center). Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

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Overview

Belladonna (Atropa belladonna), also called deadly nightshade, is a poisonous plant in the nightshade family. It grows wild in parts of Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia, and is sometimes grown elsewhere. It produces shiny black berries that are especially dangerous if eaten.

The plant contains powerful natural chemicals called tropane alkaloids, including atropine, scopolamine, and hyoscyamine. In modern medicine, purified versions of these compounds are used in carefully measured prescription drugs. As a supplement, belladonna shows up most often in homeopathic products, which are extremely diluted, and in some topical plasters.

Because the whole plant is toxic, belladonna is not a typical herbal supplement you should use on your own. Any benefit comes only from its alkaloids in controlled, regulated forms.

How it works

Belladonna's main active compounds are tropane alkaloids — chiefly atropine, scopolamine, and hyoscyamine. These block a chemical messenger in the body called acetylcholine (this is known as an anticholinergic effect).

By blocking acetylcholine, these alkaloids can relax smooth muscle in the gut, slow certain glands, reduce saliva and sweat, and affect the heart rate and the eyes. This is why belladonna can ease spasms but also cause many side effects.

Much of what we know comes from the study of these purified alkaloids in medicine. The proper dose matters greatly, because the same effects that can help in small, controlled amounts become dangerous as the dose rises.

Effectiveness

Does Belladonna work?

Here’s what the research actually shows for each use — graded by Natural Medicines and reviewed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD.

Evidence overview · 7 uses evaluated

7 Insufficient evidence

How to read these evidence grades

Natural Medicines’ 7-point scale. We show each rating’s label word-for-word.

1EffectiveStrong, consistent evidence it works.

2Likely EffectiveGood evidence, though not yet conclusive.

3Possibly EffectiveSome evidence suggests a benefit.

4Possibly IneffectiveSome evidence it may not help.

5Likely IneffectiveFairly strong evidence it doesn’t help.

6IneffectiveStrong evidence it doesn’t work.

7Insufficient Reliable Evidence to RateToo little research to say either way.

For Belladonna, current evidence isn’t strong enough to rate any specific use. The conditions it has been studied for are listed below.

Also studied for 7 conditions — evidence insufficient to rate

Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate Asthma