HERBAL supplements are considered by many as an alternative to medicine. They may be safe to take but  can cause adverse reactions especially in people taking  maintenance medicines for the heart and blood pressure.

Herbal supplements can have strong effects in the body, and some can interact with prescription medications used to treat heart and circulatory problems, such as high blood pressure and heart failure. According to Mayo Clinic, some of these interactions can be dangerous.

Many adults who take prescription medicines also take dietary supplements. Mayo Clinic said, the chances of herbs and drugs interacting are high especially for blood thinners warfarin.

Here are some herbal supplements that interact with other medicines:

* Garlic. People taking aspirin, clopidogrel and warfarin should be cautious with garlic supplement as this increases the risk of bleeding.

* Gingko. Like garlic, adults taking aspirin and warfarin face the risk of bleeding.

* Ginseng and Licorice. This can interact with warfarin and once taken, it decreases the effectiveness of warfarin.

* Hawthorn. This one got a list of medicine interactions. Adults taking beta blockers like atenolol, nadolol, and propranolol and took hawthorn may experience increase in blood pressure and heart rate.

Adults taking calcium channel blockers like diltiazem, nifedipine and verapamil, and nitrates like nitrogylecrin and isosorbide when taken with hawthorn may experience decrease of blood pressure.

* St. John’s wort. Not like other herbal supplements, St. John’s wort when taken with calcium channel blockers, digoxin, dabigatran, rivaroxaban and statins like atorvastatin (Lipitor), lovastatin and simvastatin will reduce the effectiveness of these medicines.

The items are taken from Mayo Clinic based on their research and studies.