Herbal supplements are a type of dietary supplement that contains herbs or part of a plant used for its potential therapeutic properties. We don’t need a prescription to buy them and they can be good for us. But we have to be careful. Although many herbal supplements have been proven to be healthy, they can cause an interaction when mixed up with other drugs.

The most important thing is to be clear on priorities: prescription drugs have always to be taken, so in case these cause side effects when taken with herbal supplements, you have to quit the herbal supplements. The reason why is very obvious. Prescription pills are necessary for us because we take them to deal with specific health issues, whereas herbal supplements are taken because they can help us, but not because they are necessary.

Actually, herbal supplements are the most worrisome potential interaction agents due to the fact that they are loosely regulated. Many times, we know what substance we are buying but not the concentration, and that can be a problem. So, if we are interested in buying herbal supplements, it is a good idea to purchase reputable brands ideally from a high street store.

However, we always have to tell our doctor if we want to start taking herbal supplements. In case you take some already but you haven’t told him or her yet, do it as soon as possible. Maybe you are not having any interactions at the moment, but you might have some in the future if you need to start taking new prescription drugs. Because the elderly are usually prescribed different types of meds that have to be taken on a daily basis, the risk of experiencing interactions caused by the intake of herbal supplements is higher, so letting our doctor know about our habits is crucial to avoid unpleasant and dangerous side effects.