{"id":781371,"date":"2026-05-08T06:27:26","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T06:27:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/781371\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T06:27:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T06:27:26","slug":"5-supplements-older-adults-should-approach-with-caution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/781371\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Supplements Older Adults Should Approach with Caution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many older adults turn to supplements<\/a> to boost energy, ease pain or fill nutritional gaps as they get older. About 4 out of 5 adults age 50 and older take at least one supplement or vitamin<\/a>, according to a 2022 study.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although supplements can be helpful, doctors say it\u2019s wise to approach them with caution as you get older. \u201cJust because something is sold over the counter doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s safe to take,\u201d says Dr. Kathleen Hager, an internal medicine geriatrician at OhioHealth.<\/p>\n

As we age, our bodies process medications and supplements differently, making us more vulnerable to side effects<\/a>, she says. Some supplements can raise blood pressure<\/a>, irritate the stomach or cause dizziness, while others may affect how prescription drugs are absorbed or metabolized.<\/p>\n

Older adults are also more likely to be taking multiple medications<\/a>, increasing the chances of interactions.<\/p>\n

Hager says one of her biggest concerns when it comes to older adults and supplements is polypharmacy \u2014 defined as taking more than five medications a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cPolypharmacy is a huge contributor to bad outcomes in older adults,\u201d she says, noting research that links it to falls<\/a>, confusion and medication-related reactions. People often think of polypharmacy as \u201cjust prescriptions,\u201d she adds, \u201cbut it also includes supplements.\u201d<\/p>\n

Health experts say it\u2019s important to check with a doctor or pharmacist to make sure every supplement you\u2019re taking is safe, necessary and will not interact with your other medications.<\/p>\n

Here are five common vitamins and supplements that experts say older adults should generally avoid, or at least approach with caution.<\/p>\n

1. Saint-John\u2019s-wort<\/b><\/p>\n

This herbal remedy can be effective for mild depression, but doctors say most older adults should steer clear because it interacts with a wide range of other medications, making them less effective.<\/p>\n

Saint-John\u2019s-wort revs up certain liver enzymes that your body uses to break down medications, so drugs clear out of your system too quickly, says Dr. Victoria Maizes, executive director of the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. That makes your prescriptions ineffective, even if you take them as directed.<\/p>\n

\u201cSay you needed a medicine at a dose of 200 milligrams. Because you\u2019re also on Saint-John\u2019s-wort, you only got 100 milligrams because it was broken down faster and it got out of your system faster,\u201d says Maizes, the author of a new book with AARP<\/a> called Heal Faster: Unlock Your Body\u2019s Rapid Recovery Reflex.<\/p>\n

Saint-John\u2019s-wort is known to have significant interactions with blood thinners<\/a>, transplant rejection drugs, antiretrovirals, digoxin and many psychiatric medicines. If you still want to take it, it\u2019s essential to have a doctor review every medication you take before you start.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Many older adults turn to supplements to boost energy, ease pain or fill nutritional gaps as they get…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":781372,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[210,319735,319736,1182,319733,319734,319730,319732,67,132,68,319731],"class_list":{"0":"post-781371","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-herbal-supplement-side-effects","10":"tag-iron-intake-after-menopause","11":"tag-nutrition","12":"tag-polypharmacy-in-older-adults","13":"tag-risky-vitamins-for-seniors","14":"tag-supplement-safety-for-older-adults","15":"tag-supplements-to-avoid-after-50","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-unitedstates","18":"tag-us","19":"tag-vitamin-drug-interactions"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116537540419026178","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781371","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=781371"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781371\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/781372"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=781371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=781371"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=781371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}