Who should not use these bile acid sequestrants?
Individuals who are allergic to bile acid sequestrants or who have a medical history of bile obstruction should not use these agents. Patients with phenylketonuria should not take aspartame-containing bile acid sequestrants such as Questran Light. Use: Bile acid sequestrant powders must be mixed with water or fruit juice and are typically taken once or twice (rarely, three times) daily with meals. Tablets must be taken with large amounts of fluids to avoid stomach and intestinal problems. Drug or food interactions: Bile acid sequestrants decrease the ability of the body to absorb numerous drugs such as: • warfarin (Coumadin), • thyroid hormone, • amiodarone, • sulindac (Clinoril), • methotrexate (Rheumatrex, Trexall), • digoxin (Lanoxin), • glipizide (Glucotrol), • phenytoin (Dilantin), • imipramine (Tofranil), • niacin (Niacor, Niaspan, Slo-Niacin), • methyldopa, • tetracycline (Sumycin), • clofibrate (Atromid-S), • hydrocortisone, • ezetimibe (Zetia), or • penicillin. They also inhib
