Food-Drug-Herb-Nutrient Interactions & Depletions
In this recorded live lecture, gain a working knowledge of and understand the significance of drug-food-herb-nutrient interactions and drug-induced nutrient depletions.
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*Please note that many of the associations listed under ‘CEUs/PDAs’ do not formally pre-approve online courses for credits, and thus require the student to track their own online course hours to submit for approval for their annual CEU/PDA requirements.




Meet your course instructor
RoseMarie Pierce | B.Sc. Pharm
RoseMarie Pierce has over 45 years of extensive experience as a pharmacist and natural health advocate. RoseMarie earned her degree in Pharmacy from Dalhousie University in 1972. After extensive studies in herbology and nutritional medicine, RoseMarie integrated these disciplines with her pharmacy practice to become Canada’s first Holistic Pharmacist. Proficient in the fields of phyto-pharmacy, herbal medicine, holistic health and nutrition, RoseMarie has a natural ability to present technical information in an easy-to- understand format. She is a highly respected lecturer, writer, and media personality within the natural health industry. You can locate her at www.holistic-pharmacist.com. Listen to RoseMarie on episode 28 of Pacific Rim College Radio.
Course description
A patient on medication(s) can often present with what seem like mysterious symptoms or general depletions that don’t seem related to their lifestyle or diet. In order to understand how to work with patients on medication(s), you must know how their drugs potentially interact with food and herbs and if they are causing specific or general depletions.
Valuable for all practitioners, this course provides a comprehensive, updated review of common drug-food-herb-nutrient interactions and drug-induced nutrient depletions.
In this recorded live lecture, you will gain knowledge of:
- Common drug categories and specific drugs; how they may cause the depletion of certain vitamins, minerals, and other important nutrients, and the significance of the depletion.
- The most common interactions between drugs and food, herbs and supplements, and the significance of the interactions.
- Recent stats and trends for prescription drugs & Natural Health Products (NHP).
- The prevalence of drug-food-herb-nutrient interactions and drug-induced nutrient depletions.
- Interactions and adverse effects when specific drugs are combined with certain foods, herbs, or nutrients.
- The mechanisms of action by which certain drugs are known to interact with specific foods, herbs, and nutrients.
- The difference between pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interactions.
- Certain therapeutic classes of drugs that can cause noteworthy nutrient depletions.
- Types of evidence used to document both interactions and depletions.
- Comprehend the importance of a drug’s therapeutic index.
- Understand the mechanisms of action for interactions and depletions.
- List & discuss examples of significant drug-food-herb-nutrient interactions and drug-induced nutrient depletions.
- Develop knowledge of certain (1) therapeutic classes of drugs, (2) medical conditions, and (3) Natural Health Products (NHP) which have noteworthy interactions/depletions.
- Identify reliable resources for the identification of both drug-food-herb-nutrient interactions and drug-induced nutrient depletions.
Herbs covered in RoseMarie’s course:
- Ginger (Zingiber officinale/Sheng Jiang)
- Turmeric (Curcuma longa rhizome/Jiang Huang)
- Ginkgo biloba (Yin Xing Ye)
- St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum/Guan Ye Lian Qiao)
- Curcumin from Turmeric (Curcuma longa) root
- Ginsenosides from Panax ginsen (Ren Shen)
- Piperine from Black Pepper (Piper nigrum/Hei Hu Jiao)
- Some catechins from Green Tea (Camellia sinensis)
- Silymarin from Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum/Da Ji)
- Garlic (Allium sativum)
- Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa), Black cohosh (Actaea racemosa/Sheng Ma)
- Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis – contains berberine)
- Panax ginseng (Ren Shen)
- American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius/Xi Yang Shen)
- Naringenin containing food (citrus juices, fennel, bell pepper, celery, carrots as well as Psoralens or furanocoumarin containing food (grapefruit)
- Ephedra (Ma Huang)
- Bitter orange (Citrus aurantium/Zhi Shi)
- Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra/Gan Cao)
- (Solanaceae Family): Atropa belladonna (Deadly Nightshade)
- Datura species
- Brugmansia species (Angel’s Trumpet)
- Hyoscyamus niger (Henbane)
- Mandragora officinarum (Mediterranean Mandrake)
- Alkaloids: caffeine, nicotine & cocaine
- Cannabis
- Phytates & Oxalates
- Bitter melon (Momordica charantia/Ku Gua)
- Red Yeast Extract
- Cranberry (Vaccinium spp.)
- Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens/Ju Ye Zong)
- Valerian (Valeriana officinalis/Xie Cao)

Lesson plan
Students are saying…
“The material covered was very thorough. Very happy with the class. I enjoyed this class as a complement to my studies in Holistic Nutrition. This information is very important in assisting clients who are taking pharmaceuticals and understanding nutrient depletions/interactions.”
“This course was excellent, I would recommend it for sure. I thought RoseMarie was an excellent presenter and I really liked her manner and approachability—I would like to learn more from her. I learned a great deal and found the three most significant herbal interactions (St. John’s wort, goldenseal and black pepper) most helpful.”
“It was a really great experience attending your workshop. Thank you for sharing your knowledge; it is a treasure.”
“Extremely helpful and valuable for our practice. This provided us with useful information to help our patients, and I have already advised them based on RoseMarie’s advice; they are grateful. Anecdotal evidence based on personal and professional experience is invaluable.”
“Thank you so much for your time and teaching RoseMarie. The course was very helpful and interesting.”
“RoseMarie Pierce offers a wealth of knowledge and experience in the Drug-Food-Herb-Nutrient online course. She provides science-based evidence and a host of resources and articles to support the teachings. I recommend this course to every health practitioner.”
“Enjoyable and informative course. Clear and well articulated presenter. “
Please note, this elective course is for PRC Campus students only.