The risk is particularly strong, she said, for the elderly, and for those with compromised liver or kidney function. CBD use alongside chemotherapy treatments can result in higher concentrations of the drugs for longer periods — which isn’t necessarily a good thing.

Medical practitioners have been loath to prescribe it due to its illegal nature. Therefore, it is difficult to obtain peer-reviewed, scientific statistics regarding drug interactions between medical marijuana and commonly-used medications. Some antiretroviral medications are metabolized by the same enzymes as cannabis, such as nelfinavir, indinavir, ritonavir, and saquinavir.

Your liver can only metabolize so much at once, which means more of the medication may hemp oil for pain pass unchanged into your systemic bloodstream. When you take medications orally, not all of the active ingredient you swallow will make it into your systemic bloodstream. A certain amount is lost because CYP450 enzymes break it down before it leaves the digestive system and liver. Inside the liver, more CYP450s break the medication down further.

Since 1989, 18 second-generation antiseizure medications have reached the market, resulting in a greatly increased range of treatment options for patients and prescribers. 30 years have passed and now is the time for an appraisal of the effect of these medications on clinical outcomes. Every antiseizure medication needs to be assessed individually, but overall second-generation drugs are less likely to cause pharmacokinetic interactions than their older counterparts. Some second-generation antiseizure medications have shown advantages in tolerability and safety, particularly in the treatment of older patients and women of childbearing potential.

Other interactions occur because substances act on or are metabolized by the same receptors in the body. This causes one substance to impact the amount of another substance in the body. These drug interactions can be dangerous, especially when you are unaware or unprepared for the effect. However, even though a lot of doctors aren’t up-to-date when it comes to CBD, they will still be the most important link to your health.

Both cannabis and benzodiazepine medications can have strong sedative effects on the brain, putting patients at risk of oversedation. Both compounds can have an effect on GABA, a calming neurotransmitter that dampens excitability in the brain. In general, mixing cannabis and benzodiazepines should be closely monitored. Similarly, patients may want to avoid mixing cannabis with other sedative medications like sleeping pills.