Supplement · Grade B

Butyrate and medications.

Not yet catalogued in the Distil interactions database. We surface that distinction explicitly.

Butyrate is in the Distil supplement database, evidence Grade B. The page below lists every medication we have explicitly assessed it against.

Butyrate is a short-chain fatty acid that is the main fuel for the cells lining the colon, and supplements aim to support gut barrier integrity, ease IBS symptoms and help maintain remission in inflammatory bowel disease. Doses run 150 to 600mg a day as microencapsulated sodium or calcium butyrate, or 600 to 1,200mg of tributyrin. Form matters a great deal: plain sodium butyrate is absorbed high in the gut before it reaches the colon where it is needed, so a microencapsulated or tributyrin version that releases lower down is the sensible choice. The Grade B evidence supports gut barrier repair and reduced permeability, with trial data on diverticulitis and functional constipation, though it is not a cure for IBD. On interactions, it stacks well rather than clashing: prebiotics like inulin, FOS and psyllium generate more butyrate through fermentation, and probiotics complement it. Early bloating tends to settle. A practical gut-barrier option, best taken in the right delivery form.

We have not yet completed an explicit assessment of medications for Butyrate in the Distil interactions database. We surface this distinction deliberately: the Distil checker tells you when we have explicitly assessed a pair and when we have not, because both are useful information. If you take Butyrate alongside a medication, the checker below will surface anything already in our database, and the missing-item form at the bottom of the page routes uncatalogued pairs into our next curation pass.

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. Use the checker below to surface any medication, and submit a missing item if you take something we have not catalogued.

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For adults over 18. This tool gives evidence-graded information, not medical advice. Always discuss changes with your GP, especially if you take any medication, are pregnant, breastfeeding, or have a serious health condition.

Your supplements

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Your medications

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How we decide

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 methodology

Your whole stack

Want 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 report

Something 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.

Thanks, that's logged. We go through flagged items every week.

Distil's interactions database is reviewed and updated every quarter. We grade evidence transparently and publish our methodology, including every database change, at /about/methodology. This tool is information, not a substitute for clinical judgement. If you take medication and supplements together, your GP or pharmacist can review your full regimen against your medical history. If you want a full personalised stack reasoned against this same database, the Distil report is the next step up.