Medication interaction hub

What Supplements Interact with 6-Mercaptopurine?

6-Mercaptopurine brand name: Purinethol. Every interaction below applies to the brands too.

106 Interactions 4 Major 92 Moderate 10 Minor
Curated & coded by · Clinical Pharmacist · Updated September 25, 2026

Drug–supplement interaction data sourced from Natural Medicines Pro, the licensed clinical database from TRC Healthcare / Therapeutic Research, with additional analysis by the HelloPharmacist Pharmacist Team. Our sources · Editorial policy

What is this page for?

One answer, for one medication: what supplements and herbal products interact with 6-Mercaptopurine? Every vitamin, herb, and supplement ingredient we’ve checked against it is on this page, ranked by severity, each linking to the full report for that exact pair.

This page covers supplement interactions only — to check 6-Mercaptopurine against your other medications, use the drug–drug interaction checker. Educational information from our licensed clinical databases, not medical advice. Our editorial policy

HelloPharmacist Bottom Line
Our Pharmacist Explains
What is this? The interaction data in the HelloPharmacist supplement database is licensed from Natural Medicines Pro by TRC Healthcare (Therapeutic Research). HelloPharmacist pharmacists often add our own analysis and context on top of that licensed data — such as this Bottom Line summary and the notes on individual interaction pages — and any such commentary is noted as ours.

6-Mercaptopurine (Purinethol) works by dialing down your immune system, whether for leukemia or inflammatory bowel disease, and that makes this a list to check with real care. The four major-rated entries come first. Heavy alcohol and the herb Siberian cocklebur can pile onto the strain this drug already puts on your liver, and activated charcoal can soak up your dose before your body absorbs it, leaving you undertreated.

The largest group, 53 of the 106 ingredients on file, is rated moderate and works against the drug itself by stimulating immune activity, which is exactly what your treatment is meant to hold down. Another 38 add to the liver burden, and a small set of bulky fibers and charcoals can blunt absorption of any pill swallowed near them, so space those well apart. Ten entries are minor and 92 moderate, but the liver and charcoal risks are the ones to understand first.

— , Clinical Pharmacist · July 18, 2026

Major 4 Moderate 92 Minor 10 No known interaction 1,346

This box checks one ingredient at a time (like turmeric or magnesium). Taking a supplement product with a whole label of ingredients? Search the product instead — we check every ingredient on it ↓

Most Viewed Ingredient Interactions

6-Mercaptopurine: Top Interactions at a Glance

The 6-Mercaptopurine supplement & herbal interactions people checked most in the last 24 hours, colored by severity. Tap any ingredient to open the full report for that pair.

Showing the 12 highest-ranked of 106 interacting ingredients — plus 1,346 more checked with no known interaction. See the complete ranked list.

Start here

The Most-Checked 6-Mercaptopurine Combinations Today

The 6-Mercaptopurine + supplement pages people viewed most in the last 24 hours (resets at midnight). Open any card for the full report.

Moderate Likelihood Possible Turmeric + 6-Mercaptopurinei

Theoretically, turmeric might increase the risk of liver damage when taken with hepatotoxic drugs.

Read the full interaction Moderate Likelihood Possible American Ginseng + 6-Mercaptopurinei

Theoretically, American ginseng use might interfere with immunosuppressive therapy.

Read the full interaction Moderate Likelihood Possible Niacin + 6-Mercaptopurinei

Theoretically, concomitant use of niacin and hepatotoxic drugs might increase the risk of hepatotoxicity.

Read the full interaction Moderate Likelihood Possible Andrographis + 6-Mercaptopurinei

Theoretically, andrographis might interfere with the effects of immunosuppressive drugs.

Read the full interaction Moderate Likelihood Unlikely Green Tea + 6-Mercaptopurinei

Theoretically, concomitant use might have additive adverse hepatotoxic effects.

Read the full interaction Moderate Likelihood Possible Ashwagandha + 6-Mercaptopurinei

Theoretically, taking ashwagandha with hepatotoxic drugs might increase the risk of liver damage.

Read the full interaction
The complete list

Every Supplement Checked Against 6-Mercaptopurine

All 1,452 ingredients in our database, ranked by severity — 106 with a 6-Mercaptopurine interaction on file and 1,346 with none found. Filter by severity or search any ingredient; hover the for what each ingredient is.

Looking for an interaction with a specific supplement product? Search products instead ↓

Straight answers

Can You Take It With 6-Mercaptopurine?

One-line answers, one card per combination — scroll through today’s 20 and tap any card for the full report. A different set rotates in daily until every combination has had its turn.

Can you take Turmeric with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, turmeric might increase the risk of liver damage when taken with hepatotoxic drugs.

Full Turmeric + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take American Ginseng with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, American ginseng use might interfere with immunosuppressive therapy.

Full American Ginseng + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Niacin with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use of niacin and hepatotoxic drugs might increase the risk of hepatotoxicity.

Full Niacin + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Andrographis with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, andrographis might interfere with the effects of immunosuppressive drugs.

Full Andrographis + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Green Tea with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use might have additive adverse hepatotoxic effects.

Full Green Tea + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Panax Ginseng with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, Panax ginseng use might interfere with immunosuppressive therapy.

Full Panax Ginseng + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Picrorhiza with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Picrorhiza seems to have immunostimulating activity.

Full Picrorhiza + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Quillaia with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use of quillaia with immunosuppressant drugs might decrease the effectiveness of these drugs.

Full Quillaia + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Red Yeast Rice with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use might increase the risk of liver damage.

Full Red Yeast Rice + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Rhodiola with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, rhodiola use might interfere with immunosuppressive therapy.

Full Rhodiola + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Rhubarb with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use of rhubarb with potentially hepatotoxic drugs might increase the risk of developing liver damage.

Full Rhubarb + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Rice Bran Arabinoxylan Compound with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, rice bran arabinoxylan compound might interfere with immunosuppressants by stimulating the immune system.

Full Rice Bran Arabinoxylan Compound + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Saigon Cinnamon with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, Saigon cinnamon might cause additive effects when used with hepatotoxic drugs.

Full Saigon Cinnamon + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Selenium with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, selenium supplementation may reduce the effectiveness of immunosuppressant therapy.

Full Selenium + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Shark Cartilage with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, shark cartilage might interfere with immunosuppressive therapy.

Full Shark Cartilage + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Shiitake Mushroom with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, taking shiitake mushroom might decrease the effects of immunosuppressive therapy.

Full Shiitake Mushroom + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Slippery Elm with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, slippery elm may slow the absorption and reduce serum levels of oral drugs.

Full Slippery Elm + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Spearmint with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, high doses of spearmint might increase the risk of liver damage when taken with hepatotoxic drugs.

Full Spearmint + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Sweet Annie with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use might have additive adverse hepatotoxic effects.

Full Sweet Annie + 6-Mercaptopurine answer

Can you take Sweet Clover with 6-Mercaptopurine?

Moderate Possibly, but carefully — this moderate-rated combination may need monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separated timing. Theoretically, concomitant use of sweet clover with hepatoxic drugs might increase the risk of hepatotoxicity.

Full Sweet Clover + 6-Mercaptopurine answer
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 entry links to a full report with the clinical detail, likelihood, evidence level, and citations for that exact combination.
  • Content is reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

How Does Our Interaction Checker Work?

Behind every verdict on this page is a category system. Our source database doesn’t document supplement interactions drug-by-drug — it documents them against groups of medications that behave the same way (for example, “drugs processed by the CYP3A4 liver enzyme” or “blood-thinning medications”).

So the check works in three steps: (1) 6-Mercaptopurine is classified into the pharmacology categories it belongs to, (2) every supplement interaction documented against any of those categories is inherited by 6-Mercaptopurine, and (3) each ingredient keeps its own severity, likelihood, and evidence grades from the underlying record. That’s why one supplement can carry several records for one drug — it may interact through more than one category.

6-Mercaptopurine sits in 3 interaction categories. Open any one to see what the group means:

Immunosuppressants 53 ingredients

Medications that damp down the immune system. Supplements that stimulate immunity can work against them.

53 of the supplement ingredients on this page reach 6-Mercaptopurine through this category.

Hepatotoxic Drugs 38 ingredients

Medications with known liver considerations. Supplements that can stress the liver add to the load.

38 of the supplement ingredients on this page reach 6-Mercaptopurine through this category.

Oral Drugs 17 ingredients

A pharmacology grouping from our source database: medications in this group share a property that certain supplements are known to interact with, so an interaction documented for the group applies to every drug in it.

17 of the supplement ingredients on this page reach 6-Mercaptopurine through this category.

About 6-Mercaptopurine

Mercaptopurine is a purine antagonist chemotherapy drug used to treat acute lymphocytic leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells.

Generic name: 6-Mercaptopurine  ·  Brand name: Purinethol.

See the full Mercaptopurine drug information

Related: does 6-Mercaptopurine deplete any nutrients?

6-Mercaptopurine has 1 reported nutrient association in the research literature — see the 6-Mercaptopurine nutrient depletion report.

Check a real product

Take a Supplement Product? Check the Whole Bottle Against 6-Mercaptopurine

Most supplements are combination products — and the interaction may come from an ingredient you didn’t buy it for. Search any product below (or scan its label) and we’ll check every ingredient on it against 6-Mercaptopurine.

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Products that contain 6-Mercaptopurine-interacting ingredients

Real supplements from the NIH label database that contain the top interacting ingredients on this page — each one is worth a full label check before combining with 6-Mercaptopurine.

Zi Sheng Teapills by Plum Flower contains Siberian Cocklebur Cold Away by Health Concerns contains Siberian Cocklebur Sugar Coated Bi Yan Pian by Plum Flower contains Siberian Cocklebur Pe Min Kan Wan by Plum Flower contains Siberian Cocklebur
Pharmacist Counseling Corner

6-Mercaptopurine & Supplements: Common Questions

What supplements interact with 6-Mercaptopurine?
Our database currently documents 106 ingredients with a known 6-Mercaptopurine interaction (4 major, 92 moderate, 10 minor). The practical move: scan the major group first, then look up the exact supplements you take rather than reading all 106. The highest-ranked right now: Siberian Cocklebur, Activated Charcoal, Beer.
Which 6-Mercaptopurine supplement interactions are the most serious?
Focus on the major group: Siberian Cocklebur, Activated Charcoal, Beer and Wine. A major rating means the combination can be clinically significant, not that harm is guaranteed — but it's exactly the kind of thing to run past your pharmacist before your next dose, not after. Jump to the ranked list.
Can I take vitamins or supplements while on 6-Mercaptopurine?
Plenty of supplements coexist fine with 6-Mercaptopurine; a shorter list does not. Rather than memorizing it, check the specific ingredients on your labels — the ranked list above covers every one we've checked, and multi-ingredient products can be checked label-by-label with our scanner. Try the label scanner or the interaction checker.
Do brands like Purinethol have the same supplement interactions as 6-Mercaptopurine?
Yes — Purinethol all contain 6-Mercaptopurine, so everything on this page applies to them equally. Interactions belong to the active drug, never to the brand on the box; the same is true of generics.
Where do these interaction ratings come from?
Every rating comes from the Natural Medicines database — the same evidence-graded reference pharmacists and hospitals use — and each interaction carries three separate grades: severity (how bad it can be), likelihood (how well it's documented in studies and case reports), and an evidence level. Our pharmacists review the content; we never let an AI decide an interaction. See how to read the ratings and our editorial policy.
Does 6-Mercaptopurine deplete any vitamins or nutrients?
It might — 6-Mercaptopurine has 1 reported nutrient-depletion association in the research literature, which is a different question from interactions: instead of a supplement changing the drug, the drug may lower a nutrient over time. See the 6-Mercaptopurine nutrient depletion report for the specifics and what to discuss with your pharmacist.
What about 6-Mercaptopurine and my other medications?
This page covers 6-Mercaptopurine against supplements and herbal ingredients. Checking 6-Mercaptopurine against your other prescription or OTC medications is a different tool — our drug interaction checker covers that side. Head to the drug–drug interaction checker, or read the full Mercaptopurine drug information.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

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Sourcing

Where This Data Comes From — and Why You Can Trust It

🧪 Licensed clinical database

Every interaction verdict on this page comes from Natural Medicines Pro (TRC Healthcare / Therapeutic Research) — the same evidence-graded reference used by pharmacists and hospitals. We license this data directly; we do not scrape it, and no AI invents an interaction.

🧑‍⚕️ Pharmacist review

This page is curated and coded by , Clinical Pharmacist, with additional analysis by the HelloPharmacist Pharmacist Team. Editorial commentary is ours; the licensed interaction records are shown as sourced.

🔄 Kept current

Our interaction database refreshes on a weekly cycle, and this page re-checks the live database every time it’s rebuilt — what you see reflects the database as of September 25, 2026.

🔍 Full transparency

How every dataset on this site is sourced, licensed, and updated is documented publicly: our data sources · editorial policy · how we use AI.

Educational information, not medical advice. An interaction being on file does not mean it will happen to you — and absence of one is not proof of safety. Never start or stop a medication or supplement without talking to your pharmacist or doctor.