Vitamin A and medications.
Vitamin A is in the Distil supplement database, evidence Grade A. The page below lists every medication we have explicitly assessed it against.
Vitamin A is an essential, fat-soluble vitamin, best supplemented as beta-carotene, which the body converts to retinol on demand. Its roles in immune function, skin and mucous membrane integrity are what a deficiency takes away rather than what a supplement adds: as an essential nutrient its role is Grade A, and correcting a genuine shortfall restores those functions, but nothing in our database measures an immune, skin, hair or nail outcome from supplementing someone who is not short of it. On vision the claim needs splitting: correcting a genuine vitamin A deficiency restores night vision and protects the cornea, and that is well established, but no study in our records measures an eye outcome from supplementing someone who is not deficient. It is not recommended for general eye health. The AREDS2 trial removed beta-carotene from its formulation and found that taking it out made no difference to macular degeneration while reducing lung cancer cases. The practical nuance is form and population. Preformed retinol is teratogenic at high doses and should not be supplemented above roughly 700 to 800mcg RAE per day in women of reproductive age; beta-carotene avoids that risk because conversion is regulated. The ATBC and CARET trials showed an 18 to 28 percent rise in lung cancer risk from beta-carotene, and CARET enrolled former smokers and asbestos-exposed workers as well as current smokers; a 2023 meta-analysis found the risk was not confined to high doses, since even low-dose beta-carotene raised cancer risk in smokers. So it should not be given to current or former smokers or to anyone with significant asbestos exposure, all of whom are better served by lutein and zeaxanthin. On interactions, orlistat reduces absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, so separate the timing, while zinc acts as a cofactor for vitamin A metabolism. Most people meet needs through diet, so supplement only where intake is genuinely poor and the form is appropriate.
Below are the 5 documented pairs we have explicitly assessed for Vitamin A: 2 red and 3 amber. The pairs cluster around 3 mechanisms: Additive vitamin A toxicity, Absorption interference, and Additive raised intracranial pressure. Every call is cited to either a clinical reference (PMID) or the British National Formulary. Anything not listed here is either still to be assessed or beyond our database scope. The checker beneath surfaces assessments by medication, and the missing-item form at the bottom of the page routes any uncatalogued medication into our next curation pass.
Documented interactions
Last reviewed 27 August 2026. Each interaction below lists the evidence its assessment drew on: some rest on studies of the exact pair, others on mechanism evidence, where a citation may support one part of the reasoning rather than the exact combination. The evidence line on each entry says which.
Additive vitamin A toxicity
Red Does interact with Acitretin?
Acitretin is a form of vitamin A, so adding a vitamin A supplement piles onto the same load and can tip you into vitamin A excess. This raises the risk of side effects such as dry and cracked skin and lips, hair thinning, raised blood fats, liver strain, and raised pressure in the skull. Do not take vitamin A supplements while on acitretin unless your prescriber tells you to.
Evidence: Well established across multiple human studies or interaction references.
Red Does interact with Isotretinoin?
Isotretinoin is a form of vitamin A, so taking a vitamin A supplement alongside it adds to the same load and can push you into vitamin A excess. This raises the risk of side effects such as headache and raised pressure in the skull, liver strain, dry skin and lips, and bone or muscle problems. Do not take vitamin A supplements while on isotretinoin unless your prescriber tells you to.
Evidence: Well established across multiple human studies or interaction references.
Absorption interference
Amber Does interact with Orlistat?
Orlistat blocks some of the fat you digest, and vitamin A needs fat to be absorbed, so a supplement taken close to an orlistat dose may be taken up less well. This matters most for beta-carotene and mixed-carotenoid products, where absorption fell by about a third in a controlled study, and people on orlistat for twelve weeks have shown lower blood vitamin A. The direction here is that orlistat lowers your vitamin A rather than the vitamin affecting your medicine, so the usual advice is to take vitamin A or any fat-soluble multivitamin at bedtime, at least two hours away from any orlistat dose.
Evidence: Supported by human study data.
Reviewer-flagged: awaiting clinical-reviewer sign-off.
Additive raised intracranial pressure
Amber Does interact with Doxycycline?
Both vitamin A in excess and tetracycline antibiotics such as doxycycline can raise the pressure of the fluid around the brain, a condition sometimes called benign intracranial hypertension. Taking them together may add to that risk, which can cause a persistent headache and changes in vision. If you are on doxycycline, it is sensible to avoid high-dose vitamin A supplements and to tell your prescriber straight away about any new or worsening headache or visual changes.
Evidence: Supported by human study data.
Reviewer-flagged: awaiting clinical-reviewer sign-off.
Amber Does interact with Minocycline?
Both high-dose vitamin A and minocycline can, on their own, raise the pressure of fluid around the brain, causing headaches and visual disturbance (a condition called benign intracranial hypertension). Minocycline is one of the better-known antibiotic causes, so combining it with high-dose vitamin A may add to the risk. If you take minocycline, avoid high-dose vitamin A supplements and tell your prescriber about new or worsening headaches or vision changes.
Evidence: Supported by human study data.
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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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 methodologyA full supplement review, built around you, not a generic stack.
The free checker answers one interaction question at a time. A Distil report reviews the bigger picture: your goals, diet, medications, current supplements and any blood results you provide, then shows what appears worth keeping, changing, adding or leaving out.
- what your diet already covers, so you are not adding a capsule for something food is already handling
- which evidence-graded compounds are worth considering for your goals, and which were considered but left out
- what to keep, change or stop from what you already take, plus the order to introduce anything new
- how your medications and complete supplement stack fit together, with daily timing and a clear point for reassessment
The interaction check is one section of the full report. You also get the reasoning behind each recommendation and the evidence references used.
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