The short answer
Do not swallow wintergreen essential oil or a wintergreen product intended for skin use. For other Gaultheria procumbens products, ask your pharmacist to check the exact ingredients and route before combining them with valproate. A specific interaction or protective spacing interval has not been established.
What this answer covers
The relevant clinical evidence concerns oil of wintergreen or methyl salicylate formulations, not authenticated whole Gaultheria procumbens. Oral ingestion and normal topical application are not equivalent exposures.
- Supplement or preparation
- Gaultheria procumbens
- Medication ingredient
- valproate
The product form is essential
Wintergreen can describe an essential oil or an ingredient in a skin product. A poisoning report concerns swallowed oil, and a small human study found different salicylate exposure from swallowed oil and cream. These findings do not describe normal application to intact skin.
Why the aspirin warning is not an exact match
The valproate label reports an interaction with aspirin. Wintergreen oil contains methyl salicylate, a different substance. That aspirin result does not establish the same change in valproate exposure from wintergreen or from a whole-plant product.
Spacing is not an established solution
No protective interval between valproate and a Gaultheria product was established by these sources. Show your pharmacist the ingredient concentration and directions for use so the advice fits the actual product.
If oil or a skin product has been swallowed
Seek urgent poison-service or medical advice after accidental ingestion of wintergreen oil or a methyl salicylate skin product. Do not wait for the next valproate dose to seek help. The poisoning concern applies independently of a proven medication interaction.
Evidence and practical considerations
Side effects & toxicity
Ingested oil of wintergreen has a poisoning risk, but that evidence does not establish an interaction between valproate and every Gaultheria procumbens preparation.
- Exact scope
- The relevant clinical evidence concerns oil of wintergreen or methyl salicylate formulations, not authenticated whole Gaultheria procumbens. Oral ingestion and normal topical application are not equivalent exposures. with Oral valproate active moiety; label evidence is from oral valproic acid capsules, with Depakote exposure identified separately where relevant.
- Medication form and route
- oral valproate; supplement route as specified in source and scope
- Timing or duration
- No safe co-use duration or protective spacing interval established.
What remains uncertain
- Oil studies do not authenticate the exact plant species or test valproate. Aspirin interaction findings cannot be transferred to methyl salicylate.
Factors that may matter: accidental ingestion; product concentration and route.
Read the supporting source summaries
Source 1: current oral product label
dailymed.nlm.nih.gov · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: Patients prescribed oral valproic acid capsules.
Label warns of potentially fatal liver injury, especially during the first six months, and thrombocytopenia/coagulation abnormalities. It recommends baseline and follow-up liver and blood assessments. P450 oxidation is a minor metabolic pathway. Aspirin increased free valproate fraction in six pediatric patients; the study is aspirin-specific.
How this applies: Medication risk and identity context for RxCUI 40254 valproate; oral active-moiety bridge only.
Not a study of any of these botanical combinations. Active-moiety identity does not establish interchangeable doses, release kinetics or routes. Aspirin results do not establish salicin or methyl salicylate effects.
Source 2: accidental-ingestion case report
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: Patient with oil-of-wintergreen poisoning.
Laryngeal oedema occurred as a poisoning complication; the authors emphasize urgent assessment of ingestion.
How this applies: Preparation-specific poisoning concern, indirect to the exact botanical node.
Not a valproate interaction study. Botanical species is not authenticated in the abstract; oil is not equivalent to whole Gaultheria procumbens or properly used topical preparations. Historical management details are not adopted.
Source 3: four-person randomized crossover pharmacokinetic study
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: Four adult volunteers.
Salicylate exposure differed by formulation; low-dose cream relative bioavailability was 0.5 compared with oil.
How this applies: Demonstrates why route and formulation should not be equated; does not establish a Gaultheria-valproate interaction.
Very small study, no valproate, and swallowed cream does not represent application to intact skin. Botanical identity not authenticated. Older poison-management advice in the background is not used.
Research assessment: · Open full citations ↗
Review and change history
- Publication status
- Published research summary
- Clinical review
- Not yet recorded
| Date | Update |
|---|---|
| Article prepared | |
| Original sources checked and exact-pair evidence package prepared; no clinical review asserted. | |
| Research summary published |
Article revision: 10e5b832b1d354a8
This guide brings together the evidence records used by our interaction checker. Each finding retains its own preparation limits, research date, and source summaries.
Full citations require verification. Reading this answer and the source summaries does not.
Taking other supplements or medications?
Use the checker to explore your other combinations. Ask a pharmacist to review the exact products, amounts and medical conditions in your complete list.
Open the interaction checkerInformation, not medical advice. Do not change prescribed treatment based on this guide.