# Maoi?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [March 16, 2002, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630 "2002-03-16T17:12:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Jet\_Jaguar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jet_jaguar/32/3562_2.png) [@Jet\_Jaguar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jet_Jaguar)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2002, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630/1 "2002-03-16T17:12:16Z")

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I’ve noticed that almost every prescription drug commercial warns that their drug should not be taken with MAOI’s. What is an MAOI, what do they do, and why does it seem like they have bad reactions with a lot of other medicines?

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**Author:** ![Jet\_Jaguar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jet_jaguar/32/3562_2.png) [@Jet\_Jaguar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jet_Jaguar)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2002, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630/2 "2002-03-16T17:14:39Z")

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That’s odd, the subject was originally all caps. Does the board’s software automatically “fix” capitalization now?

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**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2002, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630/3 "2002-03-16T17:15:46Z")

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Monoamine oxidase inhibitors.

Via Google: [link](http://www.biopsychiatry.com/maointeract.htm)

> [@](#):
>
> …the use of monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) has been limited by the wide range of MAOI-drug and MAOI-food interactions that are possible, particularly with sympathomimetic medications or tyramine-containing foods, resulting in hypertensive reactions…

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**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2002, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630/4 "2002-03-16T17:17:21Z")

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Monoamine oxidase inhibitors

I had to google it though so I can’t tell you much beyond that.

Some sites with information (I have not idea if it is valuable or accurate):

[http://www.biopsychiatry.com/maointeract.htm](http://www.biopsychiatry.com/maointeract.htm)  
[http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/maois/maois.shtml](http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/maois/maois.shtml)  
“MAOI” [search results](http://63.75.126.224/Google/fda_search.pl?client=fdagov&site=fdagov&restrict=&searchselector=0&q=maoi) at [FDA.gov](http://FDA.gov)

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**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\
**Post date:** [March 16, 2002, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/maoi/98630/5 "2002-03-16T17:33:01Z")

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What follows is a gross simplification of what really occurs, but it is generally accurate:

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI’s) are medications which prevent monoamine oxidase (MAO) a substance occurring naturally in one’s body, from breaking down monoamines (MA’s). If your own natural MAO is inhibited by the medication, and if you eat food rich in Tyramine, which is a MA, your body won’t be able to inactivate the tyramine by using MAO, because the MAOI has prevented the MAO from working. The excessive tyramine then stimulates the body into releasing more norepinephrine, a hormone that makes the heart race, the blood vessels constrict, and the blood pressure rise. Too much norepinephrine release by a body will be harmful and can be fatal.

[http://www.lycaeum.org/drugs/plants/maoi/maoi.html](http://www.lycaeum.org/drugs/plants/maoi/maoi.html)