Taking St. John's Wort

  I have MVP and take Inderal. I tried taking St. John's Wort a few times, but felt more flutters than usual. So is there typically a problem with this herb and MVP or was this an isolated incident? In other words, do you recommend this or not for me?

[CCF CARDIO MD APS]

Dear St.John's Wort taker,
There was recently a medical publication in response to many phsicians wanting to know
about the potential side effects of this over the counter, non FDA regulated medicine.
There are a variety of potential side effects and as usual they vary from one individual to
the next, but of the studies done thus far( these are small in number) there are no reports
specifically on increased ectopy in those with heart conditions.  What you need to do is simply not take
any over the counter medications, herbs, etc. that you feel increase the amount of flutters you experience.
In general any drug that aggravates a condition, especially a drug that has not been widely studied,
should be stopped and avoided.  It is often best for those with medical conditions to report to their physicians when they
expect to ingest a any new medication that was not prescribed by him/her.  Unlike most herbal medicines and vitamins St. John's wart is
in the process of being studied, although mostly to test it against depression, and we will in the future understand it's mechanism of action as well as
potential side effects somewhat better.  Information provided in the Heart Forum is intended for general informational purposes only, actual diagnosis
and treatment can only be made by your physician(s).