Hi betsyj-ga, and thanks for your question.
First, let me say that this answer is no substitute for medical advice.
I first wanted to check that none of the medications you list interact
with one another. There are no documented
interactions, although Lorazepam (Ativan) should not be taken with
alcohol, as you likely know.
As far as so-called cortisol inhibitors are concernced, the short
answer is that they are not known to interact with
any of the medications you list. They can, however, have some side
effects to be cautious about.
This article from the University of Montana briefly summarizes the
current situation regarding efficacy and potential
side effects:
http://www.spahs.umt.edu/DIS/pdf/March2005.pdf
This excerpt from the above article describes the safety and efficacy
issues with one of the cortisol inhibitors,
CortiSlim:
"Its ingredients include vitamin C, calcium, chromium, ?Cortiplex
Blend? (magnolia bark extract, beta-sitosterol,
theonine), ?Insutrol Blend? (banana leaf extract, vanadium), and
?Leptiplex Blend? (green tea extract, bitter orange
peel extract). [Ref. 1,3]"
"Dr. Seymour Reichlin, an endocrinologist and retired research
professor of medicine at the University of Arizona in
Tucson, reviewed the ingredients in CortiSlim? and found no scientific
verification that they had any effect on cortisol
secretion or action. The only ingredient that may aid in weight loss
was the bitter orange peel extract (Citrus
aurantium). There is insufficient information available about the
safety of bitter orange flower when used orally in
high doses. Bitter orange fruit, juice, and peel contain synephrine.
Synephrine is a stimulant similar to ephedrine,
which can increase blood pressure. Its use should be discouraged in
individuals with hypertension, narrow-angle
glaucoma, and those taking MAO inhibitors or other stimulant drugs."
So, aside from the drug interactions you mention, one should be
cautious about using these products if one has any
type of high blood pressure, glaucoma, etc.
__________________
Each particular formulation of anti-cortisol supplement has somewhat
different ingredients. An excellent resource for
looking up each ingredient to see if they may interact with something
you're taking or cause some type of side
effects is SupplementWatch.com. This site catalogs supplements along
with the theories for how they work,
scientific support for their claims, safety information, and
references. They seem to have a slight bias in the
pro-supplement direction.
For example, for CortiSlim, here are links to the pages for most of
the ingredients:
Magnolia Bark extract:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=380
Beta-sitosterol:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=372
Theonine:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=382
Vanadium:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=288
Green Tea:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=159
__________________
Although your primary question was regarding interactions with your
current medications, you may also be
interested in the current state of knowledge regarding whether or not
these products have any efficacy. The short
answer is that none of these "anti-cortisol" products has actually
been shown to reduce systemic blood levels of
cortisol in any consistent way. There also is no literature to
support the hypothesis that lowering the blood levels of
cortisol would result in the type of weight loss suggested or that the
distribution of this weight loss would be as
described.
You should read this article describing the Federal Trade Commission's
investigation of a multitude of such products.
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2004/10/windowrock.htm
One article in a recent issue of Nutrition Times is also skeptical,
stating the following in the abstract:
"Overweight Americans spend billions of dollars on over-the-counter
supplements to rid themselves of unwanted fat
and keep it off. Yet the scientific evidence, limited as it is,
suggests that these products won't help individuals
achieve their weight-loss goals. The marketers and promoters of these
supplements use testimonials, "qualified"
health claims, and other tactics to convince us otherwise and
supersize their sales."
Thomas, Paul R. EdD, RD. Dietary Supplements For Weight Loss?
Nutrition Today. 40(1):6-12, January/February
2005.
http://www.nutritiontodayonline.com/pt/re/nutritiontoday/abstract.00017285-200501000-00003.htm;jsessionid=C1fn8v
RD2R7PM60AaX3bmJzo84AWsJ2HHzeXCnEKXxJyJM3hGgTD!541047448!-949856144!9001!-1
__________________
You may also be interested in this newsletter from the Newbury Park
Athletic Club. The information regarding
CortiSlim can be found on Page 9 of the newsletter. One may argue
that this newsletter may be biased against
such a product, as an athletic club has a vested interest in people
joining and participating in their programs. This
may be true, however, this particular article is well researched and
does not appear to have any gross bias. One
could say that it was the bias of the newsletter to include the
article at all, which does not affect its well supported
conclusions. The author, Ellen Coleman, describes the purported
functions and potential mechanisms of action of
the ingredients that are not discussed in the article above, as well
as some history on the development of CortiSlim.
She also includes a more complete list of references for followup reading.
http://www.npathleticclub.com/newsletters/09-04.pdf
__________________
Also to consider - The book "Essentials of Complimentary and
Alternative Medicine" on page 389 the following:
"Given that most diseases are exacerbated by stress and given that
massage therapy alleviates stress, receiving
massages should probably be ranked with diet and exercise on any list
of health priorities, as it was in India around
1800 BC."
Jonas, Wayne B., Levin, Jeffrey S., Berman, Brian, Lewith, George T.,
Linde, MED Klaus, Pizzorno, Joseph E.,
Tsutani, Kichiro, Watson, Jean Eds., "Essentials of Complimentary and
Alternative Medicine." Ch. 22 (Massage
Therapy). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1999.
Massage therapy may be another method to consider for reduction of
stress and, secondarily, of serum cortisol
levels.
__________________
I hope this information was useful. Best of luck in reaching your goal.
-welte-ga |
Clarification of Answer by
welte-ga
on
14 Aug 2005 09:41 PDT
Hi, sorry for the poor formatting of answer. Here is version without
line breaks that's easier to read:
===========================================================
Hi betsyj-ga, and thanks for your question.
First, let me say that this answer is no substitute for medical advice.
I first wanted to check that none of the medications you list interact
with one another. There are no documented interactions, although
Lorazepam (Ativan) should not be taken with alcohol, as you likely
know.
As far as so-called cortisol inhibitors are concernced, the short
answer is that they are not known to interact with any of the
medications you list. They can, however, have some side effects to be
cautious about.
This article from the University of Montana briefly summarizes the
current situation regarding efficacy and potential side effects:
http://www.spahs.umt.edu/DIS/pdf/March2005.pdf
This excerpt from the above article describes the safety and efficacy
issues with one of the cortisol inhibitors, CortiSlim:
"Its ingredients include vitamin C, calcium, chromium, ?Cortiplex
Blend? (magnolia bark extract, beta-sitosterol, theonine), ?Insutrol
Blend? (banana leaf extract, vanadium), and ?Leptiplex Blend? (green
tea extract, bitter orange peel extract). [Ref. 1,3]"
"Dr. Seymour Reichlin, an endocrinologist and retired research
professor of medicine at the University of Arizona in
Tucson, reviewed the ingredients in CortiSlim? and found no scientific
verification that they had any effect on cortisol
secretion or action. The only ingredient that may aid in weight loss
was the bitter orange peel extract (Citrus aurantium). There is
insufficient information available about the safety of bitter orange
flower when used orally in
high doses. Bitter orange fruit, juice, and peel contain synephrine.
Synephrine is a stimulant similar to ephedrine, which can increase
blood pressure. Its use should be discouraged in individuals with
hypertension, narrow-angle glaucoma, and those taking MAO inhibitors
or other stimulant drugs."
So, aside from the drug interactions you mention, one should be
cautious about using these products if one has any type of high blood
pressure, glaucoma, etc.
__________________
Each particular formulation of anti-cortisol supplement has somewhat
different ingredients. An excellent resource for looking up each
ingredient to see if they may interact with something you're taking or
cause some type of side effects is SupplementWatch.com. This site
catalogs supplements along with the theories for how they work,
scientific support for their claims, safety information, and
references. They seem to have a slight bias in the pro-supplement
direction.
For example, for CortiSlim, here are links to the pages for most of
the ingredients:
Magnolia Bark extract:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=380
Beta-sitosterol:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=372
Theonine:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=382
Vanadium:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=288
Green Tea:
http://www.supplementwatch.com/supatoz/supplement.asp?supplementId=159
__________________
Although your primary question was regarding interactions with your
current medications, you may also be interested in the current state
of knowledge regarding whether or not these products have any
efficacy. The short answer is that none of these "anti-cortisol"
products has actually been shown to reduce systemic blood levels of
cortisol in any consistent way. There also is no literature to
support the hypothesis that lowering the blood levels of cortisol
would result in the type of weight loss suggested or that the
distribution of this weight loss would be as described.
You should read this article describing the Federal Trade Commission's
investigation of a multitude of such products.
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2004/10/windowrock.htm
One article in a recent issue of Nutrition Times is also skeptical,
stating the following in the abstract:
"Overweight Americans spend billions of dollars on over-the-counter
supplements to rid themselves of unwanted fat and keep it off. Yet the
scientific evidence, limited as it is, suggests that these products
won't help individuals achieve their weight-loss goals. The marketers
and promoters of these supplements use testimonials, "qualified"
health claims, and other tactics to convince us otherwise and
supersize their sales."
Thomas, Paul R. EdD, RD. Dietary Supplements For Weight Loss?
Nutrition Today. 40(1):6-12, January/February 2005.
http://www.nutritiontodayonline.com/pt/re/nutritiontoday/abstract.00017285-200501000-00003.htm;jsessionid=C1fn8vRD2R7PM60AaX3bmJzo84AWsJ2HHzeXCnEKXxJyJM3hGgTD!541047448!-949856144!9001!-1
__________________
You may also be interested in this newsletter from the Newbury Park
Athletic Club. The information regarding CortiSlim can be found on
Page 9 of the newsletter. One may argue that this newsletter may be
biased against such a product, as an athletic club has a vested
interest in people joining and participating in their programs. This
may be true, however, this particular article is well researched and
does not appear to have any gross bias. One could say that it was the
bias of the newsletter to include the article at all, which does not
affect its well supported conclusions. The author, Ellen Coleman,
describes the purported functions and potential mechanisms of action
of the ingredients that are not discussed in the article above, as
well as some history on the development of CortiSlim. She also
includes a more complete list of references for followup reading.
http://www.npathleticclub.com/newsletters/09-04.pdf
__________________
Also to consider - The book "Essentials of Complimentary and
Alternative Medicine" on page 389 the following:
"Given that most diseases are exacerbated by stress and given that
massage therapy alleviates stress, receiving massages should probably
be ranked with diet and exercise on any list of health priorities, as
it was in India around 1800 BC."
Jonas, Wayne B., Levin, Jeffrey S., Berman, Brian, Lewith, George T.,
Linde, MED Klaus, Pizzorno, Joseph E., Tsutani, Kichiro, Watson, Jean
Eds., "Essentials of Complimentary and Alternative Medicine." Ch. 22
(Massage Therapy). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1999.
Massage therapy may be another method to consider for reduction of
stress and, secondarily, of serum cortisol levels.
__________________
I hope this information was useful. Best of luck in reaching your goal.
-welte-ga
|
