Is Ashwagandha Safe With Bupropion, Sertraline And Azelastine?

Quick Answer

There are no known interactions between ashwagandha and bupropion, sertraline, or azelastine.

Detailed Answer

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There are no known interactions between any of the medications you mentioned in your question (bupropion, sertraline, and azelastine) and ashwagandha.

I've linked specific interaction detail pages from our herbal interaction checker below:

• Bupropion
• Sertraline
• Azelastine

Ashwagandha With Bupropion & Sertraline

The first two drugs on this list, bupropion, and sertraline, are antidepressants that affect different neurotransmitters in the brain, notably dopamine (bupropion) and serotonin (sertraline). Bupropion likely affects norepinephrine as well.

Antidepressants have the potential to interact with a number of different herbals, especially ones that also affect certain neurotransmitters. One good example here is St. John's Wort, as studies have consistently shown it has a similar mechanism of action to SSRI drugs, like Zoloft (sertraline).

In regard to ashwagandha, while it is most commonly used as an 'adaptogenic' herb, helping the body adapt to stress, some studies have evaluated whether or not it has antidepressant effects.

While the evidence for ashwagandha's antidepressant effects is promising, it's important to note that it does not appear to significantly affect neurotransmitters, like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. This is in contrast to conventional antidepressants, which often target these neurotransmitters.

Instead, ashwagandha appears to work through other mechanisms, such as reducing inflammation and oxidative stress in the brain.

Ashwagandha is not known to affect the metabolism of bupropion or sertraline either, so, based on the available evidence, there is nothing to suggest any type of clinically significant interaction between all these agents.

Ashwagandha With Azelastine

Azelastine is a second-generation antihistamine, but unlike others in this class, like Claritin and Allegra, azelastine is not available in an oral dosage form. It is only available as an eye drop and nose spray.

Ashwagandha isn't known to interact with antihistamines, and anyway, the overall systemic absorption of azelastine is relatively low due to how it is administered.

There is not thought to be any interaction between ashwagandha and azelastine.

Final Words

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I hope this answer helped provide what you were looking for.

While it can oftentimes be a challenge to definitively know if certain drugs interact with herbals due to the lack of comprehensive studies, based on the evidence available to us, there appears to be no issue with combining ashwagandha, bupropion, azelastine and sertraline.

Nevertheless, always be sure to speak with your doctor before staring any new medications or supplements.