Supplements and Nitrazepam.
Nitrazepam, sold under the brand name Mogadon, is a benzodiazepine: it potentiates GABA at the GABA-A receptor.
Nitrazepam is a benzodiazepine. The class potentiates GABA at the GABA-A receptor, producing sedation, anxiolysis, muscle relaxation, and anticonvulsant effects. UK general practice now prescribes mostly short courses for acute anxiety or sleep. Longer prescriptions are managed via specialist psychiatry, given the tolerance and dependence profile that emerges within four to six weeks of regular use. The supplement interactions that matter are additive sedation. Kava (where available, MHRA suspended 2003), valerian, magnesium glycinate at high doses (the glycine half rather than the magnesium drives the sedation), and CBD all stack on benzodiazepine effect. Alcohol is the combination most flagged in BNF and MHRA materials, given the additive respiratory depression. Lorazepam and temazepam are metabolised by glucuronidation rather than CYP, so most CYP-active supplements do not change their plasma levels. Diazepam runs through CYP3A4, so the standard 3A4 supplement interactions apply.
Below are the 3 documented pairs we have explicitly assessed against Nitrazepam in the Distil database: 3 amber. The pairs cluster around 1 mechanism: Additive CNS depression. Every call is cited to either a clinical reference (PMID) or the British National Formulary. Anything not on this list is either still to be assessed or beyond our database scope. The checker beneath surfaces assessments by supplement, and the missing-item form at the bottom of the page routes any uncatalogued supplement into our next curation pass.
Documented interactions
Additive CNS depression
Lemon balm and nitrazepam both calm the nervous system through overlapping pathways. Both are used around sleep, so combining them may mean deeper-than-intended sedation and a heavier morning grogginess, made more likely by nitrazepam's long action. Take care around driving the next morning.
Passionflower and nitrazepam both calm the nervous system through overlapping pathways. Combining them can mean stronger drowsiness and slower reactions, and nitrazepam's long action makes next-day grogginess more likely. Take care around driving the morning after.
Valerian and nitrazepam both promote sedation through overlapping pathways. Both are used around sleep, so combining them can mean deeper-than-intended sedation and a heavier morning hangover than either gives on its own. Use with care, particularly around driving the next morning.
What this list does not say. Pairs not flagged here are not implicitly safe. They are either not yet in our database, or fall outside our inclusion scope (food-supplement interactions only; for drug-drug interactions, the BNF is authoritative). Use the checker below to surface any supplement, and submit a missing item if you take something we have not catalogued.
How we grade severity, choose what's in scope, and what we exclude.
Every call on this page is reasoned. We publish the full rubric for severity tiers, the medication inclusion logic, the evidence grades we accept, and what we deliberately leave out. About three thousand words. Worth reading once if you use this tool more than occasionally.
Read the full methodologyWant this checked across everything you take?
This page checks the pairs you enter. The personalised Distil report goes further:
- the same graded, cited interaction check across your whole stack, not just the pairs you thought to type in
- where your current routine may be leaving you short of your goals
- the evidence-backed compounds worth adding, and the ones worth dropping
It's a paid report: £79, or £49 for the first 25 customers. The interactions check is one section of it, and you can read a real one in full before you buy.
See a real sample reportSomething missing?
If a supplement or medication you take isn't in our autocomplete, tell us. We go through what people flag every week and add what's missing.