Fruits and Vegetables to Watch if You’re Taking Warfarin

The Fruits and Vegetables You Might Want to Limit if You’re Taking Warfarin

The Fruits and Vegetables You Might Want to Limit if You’re Taking Warfarin
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Updated on August 6, 2025
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Many fruits and vegetables contain vitamin K, which interacts with warfarin (Coumadin). Eating healthy can become a lot easier once you know which foods contain the nutrient.

Vitamin K helps make the clotting factors responsible for slowing or stopping bleeding  — and it can negate warfarin’s blood-thinning effects.

 So keeping the amount of vitamin K in your diet consistent is crucial if you take warfarin. Knowing which fruits and vegetables contain vitamin K (and how much) can help you eat in a way that allows the warfarin to work most effectively.
If you take warfarin, it’s important to talk to your doctor about how much vitamin K you get each day through your diet. They may want to change your medication dose, how frequently your blood is monitored, or your diet to ensure that you don’t face any dangerous side effects.

 Also, make sure to mention any multivitamins and supplements you take, as those can also affect how warfarin works.

Fruits to Limit

The daily value (DV) for vitamin K is 120 micrograms (mcg) for adults and children over age 4.

 Vitamin K is essential for good health, but when taking warfarin, you need to be aware of the vitamin K content of various foods and limit those that contain high amounts — while also keeping your daily vitamin K intake consistent.
A serving of prunes, or dried plums, is about four pitted prunes — that’s 38 grams (g), or 1.3 ounces (oz) — and it contains 22.6 mcg, or 18.8 percent of the DV.

 Plantains also contain significant amounts of vitamin K, with 42.6 mcg in each serving of 1 cup of sliced yellow plantain (148 g). Kiwifruit has 60.4 mcg in each serving of 2 medium kiwis (150 g, or 5.3 oz).

 That means you’d get 35.5 percent and 50.3 percent of the DV of vitamin K in each serving of plantains and kiwifruit, respectively.
Other fruits that are moderately high in vitamin K include cooked sweetened rhubarb, avocados, blueberries, and blackberries.

Fruits to Consume

There are numerous fruits that have no vitamin K and won’t interact with warfarin. You can eat citrus fruits (and their juices), including tangerines, oranges, and clementines without concern about potential side effects.

Grapefruit also contains no vitamin K — but it is known to interact with many medications, so make sure to check that it’s safe to eat in combination with any meds you are taking.

Other fruit options that contain very little vitamin K include watermelon, apples, pineapple, bananas, cherries, pears, peaches, and papayas.

Vegetables to Limit

Fruits can provide a significant amount of vitamin K, but it’s also important to monitor vegetables when taking warfarin. Green, leafy vegetables are some of the best sources of vitamin K and can provide significant amounts — some have more than 100 percent of the DV per serving.

Once you’ve established a safe daily intake level with your doctor, you can add leafy greens like kale, spinach, or chard to your diet.

 Half a cup of Brussels sprouts, and 1 cup of lettuce or broccoli, also provide a significant amount of vitamin K, so be careful to not eat too much.

Special Considerations

To ensure your medication works effectively, it's important to get a consistent amount of vitamin K each day.

 For example, if you like to eat fruits like berries and avocados, or leafy green vegetables, make sure you eat some every day. A sudden increase or decrease in the amount of vitamin K may change the effect warfarin has on your blood.
People taking warfarin are usually told to avoid grapefruit, pomegranate, and cranberry juice due to concerns about potential interactions.

 However, one research review found that moderate consumption of cranberry juice — about 8 to 16 oz per day — was not associated with warfarin interactions.

 Always follow your doctor’s recommendations, however, if they indicate that you should avoid or limit any food or drink.
‌Always report any changes in your diet to your physician, ‌and get regular blood tests to help you and your doctor monitor how warfarin and your diet are working together.

The Takeaway

  • The anticlotting medication warfarin (Coumadin) can interact with vitamin K, which helps blood to clot. It is crucial to maintain a consistent vitamin K intake when taking warfarin.
  • Fruits with higher vitamin K content should be eaten in limited amounts and on a consistent basis. These include prunes, plantains, kiwifruit, rhubarb, avocados, blueberries, and blackberries.
  • Fruits with very little or no vitamin K include most citrus fruits (tangerines, oranges, clementines), watermelon, apples, pineapple, bananas, cherries, pears, peaches, and papayas.
  • Discuss your optimal vitamin K intake with your doctor before starting warfarin, as well as whenever your diet changes, and make sure to stay up-to-date on routine blood work.
EDITORIAL SOURCES
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Resources
  1. Vitamin K. National Institutes of Health: Office of Dietary Supplements. March 29, 2021.
  2. Why Vitamin K Can Be Dangerous if You Take Warfarin. Cleveland Clinic. October 28, 2019.
  3. Prunes for Life. California Prunes.
  4. Plums, dried (prunes), uncooked. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  5. Plantains, yellow, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  6. Kiwi fruit, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. October 31, 2024.
  7. Rhubarb, frozen, cooked, with sugar. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  8. Avocados, raw, California. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  9. Blueberries, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  10. Blackberries, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  11. Tangerines, (mandarin oranges), raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  12. Oranges, raw, navels. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. December 16, 2019.
  13. Clementines, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  14. Grapefruit, raw, white, all areas. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  15. Grapefruit Juice and Some Drugs Don’t Mix. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. July 1, 2021.
  16. Watermelon, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  17. Apples, raw, golden delicious, with skin. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  18. Pineapple, raw, traditional varieties. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  19. Bananas, ripe and slightly ripe, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  20. Cherries, sweet, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  21. Pears, raw, bartlett. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. December 16, 2019.
  22. Peaches, yellow, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  23. Papayas, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  24. Kale, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  25. Spinach, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  26. Chard, swiss, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  27. Brussels sprouts, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. April 1, 2019.
  28. Lettuce, leaf, green, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. October 28, 2022.
  29. Broccoli, raw. U.S. Department of Agriculture: FoodData Central. December 16, 2019.
  30. Warfarin, Your Diet, and Vitamin K Foods. Iowa Health Care. April 2025.
  31. What to Avoid When Taking a Blood Thinner. Cleveland Clinic. March 19, 2024.
  32. Madden E et al. Safety of Cranberry: Evaluation of Evidence of Kidney Stone Formation and Botanical Drug-Interactions. Planta Medica. May 20, 2021.
  33. Blood Tests That Are Needed When Taking Warfarin. Iowa Health Care. April 2025.
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Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCES

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Lynn Grieger is a registered dietitian-nutritionist, certified diabetes care and education specialist, certified personal trainer, and certified health and wellness coach. She completed requirements to become a registered dietitian at Valparaiso University in 1987 and completed a dietetic internship at Ingalls Memorial Hospital in Harvey, Illinois, in 1988. 

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