Food and medication
Iron and zinc and medication
Iron, zinc and other minerals can bind to some medicines in the gut. Keep supplements a few hours from your dose.
4 medicines on our checker are affected. Tap a medicine for every food and drink that matters with it.
Take care iron and zinc with these medicines
- Alendronic acid · Fosamax, Binosto
Iron and zinc bind to alendronic acid and stop it working. Wait at least 30 minutes after your dose.
Where this comes from
“Tell your doctor if you're taking supplements or multivitamins containing calcium, iron, magnesium or zinc.”
Information from the NHS website - Cefalexin · Keflex
Zinc reduces the amount of cefalexin absorbed, so keep supplements at least 3 hours apart.
Where this comes from
“Do not take cefalexin at the same time as zinc supplements or anything with zinc in it. This is important because zinc may reduce the amount of cefalexin in your body, meaning the medicine cannot work as it's meant to.”
Information from the NHS website - Levothyroxine · thyroxine, synthroid, eltroxin
Iron and other minerals bind levothyroxine. Keep supplements 4 hours from your dose.
- Tetracycline antibiotics · doxycycline, lymecycline, tetracycline
Iron, zinc and magnesium bind the antibiotic. Keep supplements 2 to 3 hours from your dose.
Foods and drinks that count as iron and zinc
- Iron tablets
- Multivitamins with minerals
- Zinc supplements
- Magnesium supplements
- Pregnancy vitamins
- Spatone
- Iron-fortified cereal
Common questions
- Which medicines does iron and zinc affect?
- 4 medicines on our checker: Alendronic acid (take care), Cefalexin (take care), Levothyroxine (take care), Tetracycline antibiotics (take care).
- Which foods count as iron and zinc?
- Iron tablets, Multivitamins with minerals, Zinc supplements, Magnesium supplements, Pregnancy vitamins, Spatone, Iron-fortified cereal.
General information from NHS medicine pages and drug labels, not medical advice. Always follow your prescriber, pharmacist or the leaflet with your medicine. How we check.