gingko biloba and eliquis

Hello all - I haven't been on here in awhile...but have been doing pretty well overall. One issue I'd like to bring up later, but for now...I have a question I'd like to pose to the guru's on here

I have been taking a supplement that has gingko biloba in it for awhile now, and all is fine. I'm on the blood thinner Eliquis, and would like to take a bit more of this in another version of the supplements I've been taking. I believe that gingko has a reputation for thinning the blood a bit too, and want to know if any of you know if this is a real concern or not. I'm on 5 mg. of Eliquis twice/day...

Does anyone have any information on this?

Happy New Year ~ Barb H.

Hi Barb and Happy New Year to you, too!

I have always been a big fan of ginkgo biloba and used it daily for years. However, once starting on Eliquis, I knew there were contraindications for using it with blood thinners because I had used it specifically to help thin my blood in the previous years of Afib for just that reason, to help avoid adverse clotting because I was not using warfarin.. (I used Ginkgo and other natural substances that help keep blood thin).

So, when I began Eliquis, I stopped the ginkgo. However, because of the benefits to the brain, I was reluctant to give it up completely so when they changed my Rx dosage to the 2.5 mg twice a day, I decided to take ginkgo 3 times a week.
My dose for one capsule is 80 mg.

I seem to clot normally with minor cuts so I'm using this as a guide to avoid overthinning complications.

You can Google "ginkgo and blood thinners" and see various reports warning about not using with blood thinners.

I would proceed with caution, Barb, while you are still taking the 5 mg twice a day.

Best to you,
Jackie

And like to add..... ginger.

Started adding chunk ginger to daily veggie juicing and
that seems to be why Doc had to up warfarin
from 40mg WEEK to 47.5

Also another trigger that sent me on an AFIB trip:

PSEUDOEPHEDRINE, decongestant.
Bad bad!

The blend I am taking has 60 mgs total of 4 different ingredients, with Gingko being the last (and lowest amount)...so I'm thinking I'm getting no more than 10 mgs when I take it. I also have had some cuts and bled normally, as well as clotting normally, so I'm assuming I'm OK too.

Unfortunately, last year I was sick with walking pneumonia and when the doctor ordered a Cat scan, it showed a 'wedge' in my left kidney...which after much discussion with various technicians, was determined to likely be a blood clot. I believe I got this after severely pulling a muscle in my left side the year before, but since the doctor did not see a shadow, he wasn't convinced it was when it happened. I DO think that's when it happened as I never felt a pull like that in my life....but after this test was done, my Cardiologist felt that I wasn't on a strong enough dose of Eliquis (she said she wasn't sure where the clot came from and isn't sure it didn't come from my heart)....So I went from a dose of 2.5 mgs to 5 mgs. BID......and probably will never be able to convince her to lower it again.

While the Eliquis itself doesn't bother me, I don't like having to worry about interactions with other things - in this case, a great supplement.

Bleh....

Hi Barb - That's very interesting... and I'm certainly sorry to read your report. Will they eventually do another CT scan to see if the clot has dissolved? Have you considered getting a second opinion consult with a nephrologist to review the CT scan images?

I agree with you that 10 mg of the Ginkgo should be a minor amount in your blend.

Please stay in touch so we know how you are.

Best to you,
Jackie

I didn't ask for a second opinion because my Cardiologist is concerned about where the clot MAY have come from...and since there is uncertainty about the whole thing, I'm guessing she isn't about to change her mind. I really liked the nephrologist that I went to a lot...and would prefer not to have more CAT scans if I don't have to (I've had a few in the past few years, plus 3 TEE's, MRI's, etc....) but I will if it's necessary.

Kind of wish I had the closure done at the same time as my ablation, but I guess it wasn't quite ready at that time.

Barb

My experience with ginko (120 mg/day), fish oil (4800 mg/day) and aspirin (83 mg/day) is my cuts take a bit of time to clot. I'm forever taking skin off rock climbing and other activities, so bleeding is frequent. I'd certainly have to change my intake if I were on a blood thinner.

Oh my - well that's a lot of natural blood thinning you're already doing, George! I'm only talking about taking maybe
30 mgs. max of the ginkgo/day. I don't take aspirin and I'm inconsistent with the fish oil, but when I do take it, it's about 3600 mgs. of that...again, I probably should take that more consistently, but I don't.

Given the low dose of gingko biloba I'm wanting to take, it seems like it should be OK...I have been taking about 10-15 mgs./day before and since I've been on Eliquis, and all seems fine. Increasing it to 20-30 mgs. is what I want to do (as it's part of a supplement I want to take now)...

Am I wrong about this? Barb