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Question About Suboxone and Grapefruit

nomoreplease

Greenlighter
Joined
Oct 27, 2015
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6
I was just curious about some of the details about using grapefriut juice as a potentiator for Suboxone. First of all, does it have to be white grapefruit juice and what if any is the difference? Next, how much GFJ does one need to drink? Also, at what point does the GFJ need to be drank? THANKS!
 
It needs to be 100% GFJ, white or other. Many GFJs are either a mix or watered down, so those are useless. At least 8 ounces (Ive read more but not convinced) an hour or two before should be ok but some suggest spacing a few glasses over several hours (again Im not convinced this matters).

Why you want to potentiate bupe?
 
Thank you first of all! I guess maybe potentiate in this case was the wrong term...I'm looking to increase half life of the Subs. I understand that it slows the enzymes that break down the bupe so that it can work longer. I wonder, too, if the amount of GFJ depends any upon the dosage of buprenorphine?
 
Potentiate is correct. Potentiate in medicine means to give two drugs together to increase the effects of one or both. In general language it means to increase or intensify.

You would effectively be increasing the t1/2 (as well as concentration) of bupe because there is a relationship between half-life and rate of elimination. If the elimination rate slows half-life increases. By taking GFJ with bupe you are inhibiting the liver enzymes responsible for its metabolism, meaning less drug per unit time is eliminated.

Regarding dosing. If you are on super doses of bupe, you may require more GFJ because they basically compete for the enzymes involved in their metabolism. But these enzymes can be saturated, and is why some claim drinking multiple glasses for several hours before is preferred.
 
I guess it also matters what the half-life is for active compounds binding to CYP2D6 in grapefruit juice, if they unbind fairly quickly, then a single glass at one time may not be enough to provide a significant effect. I gotta look into this too as I constantly run out of bupe before I collect more.
 
CYP2D6 is a liver enzyme. The chemicals in GFJ are furanocoumarins that inhibit CYP450 enzymes in the liver.
 
Yes, I know, but I guess their half-lives play a role in how long they inhibit the enzymes, right? I mean, one thing is how strongly they bind there, and the other thing is how much is excreted, how much goes into the bloodstream and so on.
 
Thank you guys for the info. I did go ahead and try the GFJ method and it seems about right to say half life was almost doubled. This could be a result that varies though from person to person and dose sizes as well. Definitely worth the 1.97 I paid out for the can of juice though!
 
It needs to be 100% GFJ, white or other. Many GFJs are either a mix or watered down, so those are useless. At least 8 ounces (Ive read more but not convinced) an hour or two before should be ok but some suggest spacing a few glasses over several hours (again Im not convinced this matters).

Why you want to potentiate bupe?
Does this mean that it can also be normal 100 % grape fruit juice, because I can't find white at all? Sorry, but english is not my native language and I don't fully get it.

Does red grape fruit juice work the same way?
 
Mmmm, not quite right. It very well should be white grape fruit juice, red grapefruit does not have nearly the same concentration of the enzyme inhibitors as white does. I reiterate, ...WHITE!!! is the way to go, lol.
This is from both research and lots of experimentation. White grapefruit is a very effective potentiator for most opiates, as well as benzodiazapines, ....that said, always be careful with the juice, that is why many scheduled meds have grapefruit warning labels on them. I used to get either red or white for awhile, up until I found out there was indeed a difference, and definitely not placebo, very very noticeable difference, ...and it has become a staple of mine in helping to stretch my little chemical helpers ever since.
Good luck and enjoy it, I personally hated grapefruit juice awhile ago, now I have become acclimated, and even really enjoy it.

Side Note: I have heard pretell, ..that "from concentrate" WGFJ contains more of the enzyme inhibitors than does 100% juice, ...and not sure if it is just speculation, both work very noticeably well for me, and the concentrate does seem to work a little better. Not sure how much, if any, of a difference there actually really is. Just thought I would throw in my 2 cents, hope this helps, .....cheers
 
Earl grey tea does the same thing, as long as it has real bergamot in it, yes bergamot oil works as well. Same enzyme that is within grapefruit juice, it works with any opiate or opioid, also works with benzos.

Warning also potentials many other pharmaceuticals, grapefruit and bergamot so becareful can cause life-threatening complications so do your research.
 
I have read somewhere so not gospel that the grapefruit juice changes some of the drug into norbuprenorphine or some shit think it was a science paper
that could be a more potent drug binding to more receptors perhaps other ones too I.E drugs
norbuprenorphine
 
potentiating suboxone.... thats like wanting a turd to be stuck in your colon for longer than needed. seriously?? wtf is your problem dude?
 
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