Herb & supplement monograph

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

But these pages have grown well beyond that into a full monograph — what Skullcap 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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Reviewed by licensed pharmacists Sourced from Natural Medicines

On this page

Skullcap Drug Interactions: The Bottom Line

From the HelloPharmacist Editorial Team · Updated July 2026

Skullcap drug interactions are unlikely to cause serious harm for most people, but there is a moderate, mostly theoretical risk of extra drowsiness when it is combined with sedating medications. None of the listed interactions are rated major; all are moderate, and every one traces back to a single concern about added sedation.

Interactions deserving the most attention

The interactions that deserve the most attention involve CNS depressants, meaning medications that slow the nervous system and cause drowsiness. Animal and human research suggests skullcap itself can be sedating and may dull thinking, so pairing it with these medicines could add to that effect. That said, the combined effect has not been well documented in people, so this is a sensible caution rather than a proven danger.

What the rest of the list means

The large number of listed medications reflects one shared theme, not hundreds of separate problems. Nearly every entry is a sedating medicine grouped under the same additive-drowsiness concern, and that concern is largely theoretical. In practice, the main effect most people might notice, if any, is feeling sleepier than expected.

Check your medications against Skullcap

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

Interaction report

Drugs that interact with Skullcap

248 medications have a known interaction with Skullcap, 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 Skullcap using our pharmacist-reviewed interaction data.

AI summaries are generated from our Skullcap 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 Skullcap 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 Skullcap affects

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

All 1 drug category Skullcap interacts with

Cns Depressants

Theoretically, skullcap can have additive effects when used with other CNS depressants.
Animal and clinical research suggests that skullcap can cause sedation and cognitive impairment.

Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Monograph

Skullcap: Uses, Safety & Side Effects

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

The bottom line

American skullcap is an herb traditionally used to calm anxiety and promote relaxation, but solid human evidence is very limited. It is generally considered relatively safe for short-term use in healthy adults, though it should be avoided in pregnancy and breastfeeding and used cautiously because of possible liver concerns and product mislabeling.

Scientific name: Scutellaria lateriflora
Family: Lamiaceae
Part used: Above-ground parts (leaves, stems, and flowers)
Common forms: Tea, capsules, tinctures, liquid extracts, dried herb

People commonly use it for

Anxiety and stress
Trouble sleeping
Nervous tension
Muscle spasms
General relaxation

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

Safety at a glance

OverallUse caution

Often used short-term, but evidence is limited and product quality varies, so use with care.

PregnancyInsufficient reliable information

Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

Read the full pregnancy detail

BreastfeedingInsufficient reliable information

Insufficient reliable information available; avoid using.

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.

Jump to a section

Overview

Skullcap is a flowering herb in the mint family. The name usually refers to two different plants. American skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora) is native to North America and has small blue or purple flowers. Baikal or Chinese skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis) is a different plant used in traditional Chinese medicine, and its root has its own separate uses. This monograph focuses mainly on American skullcap.

The plant gets its name from the cap-like shape of its small flowers. People have used the above-ground parts (leaves, stems, and flowers) for many years in traditional medicine.

Today, American skullcap is most often taken as a tea, capsule, tincture, or liquid extract. It is popularly used as a calming herb for stress, anxiety, and restlessness.

How it works

American skullcap contains plant compounds called flavonoids, including baicalin and scutellarin. Researchers think some of these compounds may interact with chemical messengers in the brain, such as GABA, which helps the nervous system calm down.

Some lab studies also suggest skullcap compounds may act as antioxidants. It is important to know that most of this work has been done in test tubes or animals, not in well-designed human studies. So the exact way it might work in people is not fully understood.

Effectiveness

Does Skullcap work?

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

Evidence overview · 11 uses evaluated

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

Also studied for 11 conditions — evidence insufficient to rate

Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate Allergic rhinitis (hay fever)