It is commonly held that the use of mangosteen is safe by children and adults under most conditions, and that there are no contraindications as pertains to other medications. In fact, the medical community used to state that the only problem associated with it is that many people rely solely on mangosteen and avoid the use of other often essential and life-saving drugs.

However, new findings now indicate that unsupervised use of fruits like mangosteen can reduce the production of essential fats and cause harmful weight loss. This is obviously a worrisome factor, especially in cases where weight loss is highly undesirable. Apart from the fact that lipids (or fats) serve as a significant fuel source for the body, it gives rise to questions about the advisability of mangosteen in immunodeficiency-related conditions.

There are now reports that the much hyped antioxidant properties of mangosteen may actually interfere with the action of some of the chemotherapy drugs and radiation therapies used in cancer treatment. Additionally, even diabetics have now been advised to take mangosteen with caution after all, it DOES contain sugar.

Another factor is mangosteens low shelf-life. Its therapeutic properties are only applicable when it is in its natural state, and many manufacturers therefore add certain preservatives and stabilizing agents to their product to make it last longer. Needless to say, these agents can give rise to side effects that may unjustly be attributed to mangosteen. This is especially true when inexplicable drug interactions take place.

One last word of caution mangosteen blocks the effects of the bodys naturally produced histamines. These are essential, because they increase blood flow to injured or externally invaded parts of the body. Suppression of histamines can cause a major disruption in essential metabolic responses.