The short answer
Do not add passionflower to lorazepam without a pharmacist or prescriber reviewing it. A reported reaction involved lorazepam with both passionflower and valerian, so passionflower’s individual contribution is uncertain.
What this answer covers
Oral Passiflora incarnata; original case also involved Valeriana officinalis, and specific product doses are unavailable in the abstract.
- Supplement or preparation
- Passiflora incarnata
- Medication ingredient
- lorazepam
What the case reported
A person using lorazepam added both passionflower and Valeriana officinalis. Hand shaking, dizziness, throbbing and muscle fatigue were reported. The authors suspected an interaction, but could not isolate either herb’s role.
Other evidence is more limited
The passionflower monograph lists no reported interactions, while a small preoperative trial did not find added sedation from its preparation. Neither result rules out problems from a mixed sleep product with lorazepam.
Check every ingredient in a blend
Bring the passionflower species, plant part, dose and other ingredients, especially valerian. A time gap has not been shown to prevent a recurrence of the reported symptoms.
Watch for impaired alertness
Lorazepam can affect alertness and coordination. Avoid driving if affected. Seek urgent help for severe difficulty waking or breathing, and tell the prescriber about alcohol, opioids and all other sedating products.
Evidence and practical considerations
Side effects & toxicity
A mixed-herb exact-drug adverse-event report supports a conditional avoid/review precaution, not proven isolated passionflower causality.
- Exact scope
- Oral Passiflora incarnata; original case also involved Valeriana officinalis, and specific product doses are unavailable in the abstract. with Exact oral lorazepam tablets. Rapid conjugation to lorazepam glucuronide, which has no demonstrable CNS activity in animals. Oral tablet scope; injected lorazepam is not assigned the same supplement evidence.
- Medication form and route
- oral
- Timing or duration
- Source-specific single-dose, repeated-dose and observational exposures distinguished.
What remains uncertain
- Single confounded case, abstract only; no exact risk magnitude or established mechanism. Separate passionflower trial and monograph are limited counterevidence.
Factors that may matter: preparation and plant part; clinical indication; dose; other medicines; baseline alertness.
Read the supporting source summaries
Source 1: current product label
dailymed.nlm.nih.gov · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: Patients prescribed oral lorazepam.
Can impair alertness and coordination; other CNS depressants can increase impairment. Opioid combinations have a specific respiratory-depression warning. Dependence and withdrawal require supervised changes. Rapid conjugation to lorazepam glucuronide, which has no demonstrable CNS activity in animals. Oral tablet scope; injected lorazepam is not assigned the same supplement evidence.
How this applies: Exact IN and labeled oral formulation; route, salt and metabolite distinctions retained.
No quantified risk for every herb or universal protective spacing interval. Opioid-specific evidence does not prove equal botanical respiratory risk.
Source 2: original case report
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: One patient with generalized anxiety disorder.
Hand shaking, dizziness, throbbing and muscular fatigue were reported; authors suspected additive or synergistic activity.
How this applies: Exact exposures and preparation limitations apply; no untested dose or route equivalence.
Both herbs were used together; cannot isolate passionflower, prove receptor mechanism or quantify risk. Abstract only; no coma or respiratory arrest established.
Source 3: official guidance
ema.europa.eu · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: People considering the specified supplement.
Traditional sleep-aid use; may impair driving. Section 4.5 lists no reported interactions.
How this applies: Preparation-specific context; not a directly measured lorazepam interaction.
Traditional-use monograph, not a lorazepam trial. No reported interaction is not proof of safety.
Source 4: randomized placebo-controlled trial
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · Source check Sep 10, 2026
Population: 60 adults undergoing ambulatory surgery.
Anxiety decreased, but sedation and psychomotor recovery were similar between groups.
How this applies: Original named medication and preparation only; indirect evidence for lorazepam. Comparator arms are not coadministration.
Short perioperative exposure to one product, no lorazepam; does not establish chronic combination safety.
Research assessment: · Open full citations ↗
Review and change history
- Publication status
- Published research summary
- Clinical review
- Not yet recorded
| Date | Update |
|---|---|
| Article prepared | |
| Current exact available claims adjudicated using original captures and explicit identity and comparator limits. | |
| Research summary published |
Article revision: d189fe03d15f4558
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.