Allegra is a very common medication for those with allergies, and for many, the daily routine may be to take any of your medications with breakfast. You may want to pause before the next time you take Allegra with juice. Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld, the host of Sunday Housecall on Fox News, says that you should never take the antihistamine medication Allegra with juice, and here’s why:

‘If you take the pill with fruit juice – any kind of fruit juice, apple juice, grapefruit juice, orange juice – you lose about 36 to 40 percent of its efficacy. Please, if you’re using Allergra, and especially now with the hayfever season about to be here, you should take Allegra with water.’

At AchooAllergy.com, we know the big reason is that the fruit juice reduces the amount of active ingredients in Allegra absorbed by the body. This reduction can be up to 35%! We also have read lately that it is best to wait several hours after taking the medicine before you drink any type of juice–wait at least 3-4 hours.

Grapefruit juice in particular has a history of interfering with medications. Dr. Isadore further cautions:

‘Grapefruit juice has an effect on a wide variety of medications. If you are taking any pill – whether it’s a birth control pill or antibiotic or a statin to lower cholesterol – do not take grapefruit juice. Discuss it with your doctor. Some things you can take with grapefruit juice, but many you cannot.’