Attention Athletes Taking Coumadin

There have been several threads concerning Coumadin use recently from those athletes with pulmonary emboli, DVT (blood clots in the legs), various surgical procedures etc. Several dietary restrictions are placed involving foods that may interact with this medication. In the May 2010 *American Journal of Medicine, *a nice article talks about cranberry juice, thought by many to be one such food. “Cranberry Juice and Warfarin (generic name for Coumadin): When Bad Publicity Trumps Science”

In short, the article points out, “The alleged interaction between cranberry juice and warfarin is limited to anecdotal case reports that represent harmful and misleading conclusions.” Their advice is summarized noting, “Consistency of diet is the cornerstone of dietary advice for treatment of patients taking warfarin.”

Thus, cranberry juice is found in many products we see and use and there is no need to eliminate them during the period the athlete is on warfarin (Coumadin).

Interesting. i am on for life, and have migrated to the philosophy held by some docs to “dose to the diet, don’t diet to the dose.” As long as one is consistent, and regulalry checks INR, I think a lot of what docs tell us is based on anecdote and fear of the worst case scenario. and lawsuits.