Herbal remedies like ginkgo biloba and St. John’s wort have grown in popularity in recent years as natural treatments for everything from fatigue and depression to headache and anxiety. Yet, according to a review article published in the February 9 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, for patients taking certain heart medications, these centuries-old herbal remedies can introduce some dangerous modern complications. For example, heart patients on an aspirin regime or who take the blood thinner Warfarin (also known as Coumadin) may be at higher risk for bleeding if they combine those medications with ginkgo biloba. And St. John’s wort, popularly used to treat sleep problems or depression, can interact with heart medications to increase the risk for arrhythmias, high blood pressure and high levels of cholesterol.
