Cholestyramine
Content date: 15 November 2026
Cholestyramine, also spelled colestyramine, binds bile acids in the bowel. It may help bile-acid diarrhoea or itching caused by impaired bile flow. The reason for treatment determines the plan.
Your next step
Check your written prescription and monitoring plan. If anything is unclear, ask your care team before changing a dose.
Get urgent help: Seek urgent care for sudden severe abdominal pain, or abdominal pain and swelling with inability to pass stool or gas, especially with vomiting. Do not wait for every symptom. Breathing difficulty also needs urgent help.
How do I use it?
- Mix the prescribed powder with the liquid volume on your product label and stir well. Never swallow the powder dry. Your clinician may start with a small dose and adjust it according to how well it works and whether it causes constipation. Sachets and scoops differ between products; use the measuring device supplied with your own medicine.
How do I store it?
- Keep the container closed and away from children. Follow the temperature limit on your pack. If mixing a dose ahead of time, ask the pharmacist how to store it and when to discard it.
What tests do I need?
- During prolonged treatment, your clinician may review triglycerides, nutrition and fat-soluble vitamins, particularly if doses are high or absorption is already poor. Additional monitoring is needed with medicines such as warfarin. Do not start high-dose vitamin supplements without advice.
Possible side effects: what to expect
- Not everyone gets side effects. Constipation is most frequent; bloating or nausea may occur. Constipation is often mild and manageable. Discuss troublesome symptoms early and follow your appropriate fluid intake.
- Bowel obstruction is a rare reported risk. Prolonged use can impair vitamin absorption, including vitamin K needed for clotting. Follow-up and medicine spacing help prevent problems. Report unusual bruising; severe pain with vomiting needs urgent assessment.
Important points
- Take other oral medicines at least one hour before, or four to six hours after, cholestyramine unless your pharmacist gives a specific plan. This includes ursodiol and thyroid medicine. Ask for a practical schedule when you take several medicines. Bile-acid diarrhoea needs assessment; this medicine does not treat every cause of diarrhoea.
My prescribed plan - complete with the team
Brand / device: ........................ | Dose and how I take or use the medicine: ........................
Next dose: ........................ | Next blood tests: ........................
Team contact: ........................
Brand / device: ........................ | Dose and how I take or use the medicine: ........................
Next dose: ........................ | Next blood tests: ........................
Team contact: ........................
When to get help
Seek urgent care for sudden severe abdominal pain, or abdominal pain and swelling with inability to pass stool or gas, especially with vomiting. Do not wait for every symptom. Breathing difficulty also needs urgent help.
Contact your clinician for troublesome constipation, persistent diarrhoea, unusual bruising or bleeding, or difficulty separating your medicines safely.