Food Diary: Track What You Eat to Better Manage Medications and Health

Food diary, a daily log of what you eat and drink, often including portion sizes and timing. Also known as diet journal, it's not just for people trying to lose weight—it's a critical tool for anyone on medication, managing a chronic condition, or dealing with unexplained symptoms. When you take drugs like warfarin, SGLT2 inhibitors, or antidepressants, what you eat can change how those meds work. A food diary helps you connect the dots between your meals and how you feel.

For example, if you're on warfarin, a blood thinner that reacts strongly to vitamin K, eating a big salad one day and fried chicken the next can make your blood clotting levels swing wildly. A food diary shows you exactly which foods are causing those spikes. Same with SGLT2 inhibitors, diabetes drugs that can trigger dangerous ketoacidosis if paired with low-carb diets or alcohol. Tracking your meals helps you avoid the hidden traps that raise your risk.

It’s not just about drugs. If you’re taking rifampin, an antibiotic that makes birth control fail, or clonidine, a blood pressure med that can drop your blood sugar if you skip meals, your food diary becomes your early warning system. You start noticing patterns: "Every time I skip breakfast after taking my pill, I get dizzy." Or, "My tinnitus got worse after I started drinking grapefruit juice with my amlodipine." These aren’t guesses—they’re facts your diary proves.

Most people think a food diary means counting calories. It doesn’t. It means writing down what you ate, when, and how you felt afterward. Did your joint pain flare after cheese? Did your blood sugar crash after a high-sugar snack on metformin? Did you feel foggy after lunch with wine and your antidepressant? These are the clues your doctor needs—and your food diary gives them to you.

It’s simple. You don’t need an app. Just keep a notebook by your kitchen. Write it down as you eat. No judgment. No perfection. Just truth. Because when you know what you’re putting in your body, you stop guessing why you feel off. You start fixing it.

In the posts below, you’ll find real stories and science-backed advice on how what you eat affects your meds—from warfarin and antibiotics to diabetes drugs and antidepressants. No fluff. Just what works.