Is It Safe To Combine Potassium Citrate And Khellin?

Answer

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There is no known drug interaction between khella (the plant that contains khellin) and potassium citrate. While I won't go as far to say they are 100% safe to take together because we are lacking any specific studies on the matter, there is no evidence to support an interaction between them.

More Details

Based on the limited data available, it appears that khella does have some potential drug interactions to be aware of, including with:

• Digoxin
• Drugs that are hard on the liver
• Drugs that increase sun sensitivity

Khella, in addition to khellin, contains visnadin, which may counteract the effects of a drug like digoxin.

Some studies have shown that khella can elevate some liver enzymes, specifically liver transaminases, so should be used cautiously with drugs that can potentially be toxic to the liver (such as acetaminophen, isoniazid, and methotrexate).

Lastly, khella has very rarely been linked to causing 'photosensitivity' and needs to be used cautiously with other drugs that do the same.

Again, there is no indication that khella interacts with potassium citrate, a drug that is used to treat kidney stones.

Potassium citrate has few drugs interaction in its own right. In fact, the prescribing information for the drug only lists two types of interactions, and that is with:

• Potassium-sparing Diuretics (e.g., spironolactone, amiloride): Increases the risk of hyperkalemia (high potassium levels).
• Drugs that slow gastrointestinal transit time (e.g., dicyclomine): Increases the risk of gastrointestinal irritation.

Final Words

It's always a challenge to be able to definitively say an herbal has no interactions with any given drug due to the lack of data available. Nevertheless, I could find nothing to support a potential interaction between khella and potassium citrate.

As always, be sure to let your doctor know about all the medication you are taking so you can be appropriately monitored.