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MyDeficiencies

Carisoprodol

centrally acting skeletal muscle relaxant (carbamic acid ester); Schedule IV in the US

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Findings for this medication

Research about this medication, graded for how strongly each finding can be attributed to it. Nothing here describes your own levels.

Carisoprodol has no recognized classical depletion machinery. It is cleared by hepatic CYP2C19 conversion to meprobamate (carisoprodol half-life about 2 hours, meprobamate about 10 hours) and by renal and non-renal routes; the US labels retrieved describe no vitamin, mineral or food interaction (a high-fat meal did not change carisoprodol exposure) and the only food or supplement interaction on the drugs.com page opened is alcohol [1][2][3][22]. Of the nine mechanism classes screened, none of absorption interference, enzyme-induced catabolism, renal wasting or cofactor antagonism is documented. Two are present in a limited sense: changed intake (labeled nausea, vomiting and drowsiness) and a CNS-depressant action that is the drug's intended pharmacology and not a nutrient finding (Hard Rule 2).

centrally acting skeletal muscle relaxant (carbamic acid ester); Schedule IV in the US · ATC M03BA02 (WHO ATC/DDD Index [5]) · also sold as Soma; many generics; combination products with aspirin · reviewed 2026-10-07. This describes research about the medication. It does not say anything about your own levels or health.

How to read the evidence grades

These colours describe how strongly a finding can be attributed to the medication in the research. They are not a severity score and they say nothing about your own health.

Grades describe how strongly a finding can be attributed to Carisoprodol in the research — not how common it is, how serious it would be, and not anything about you personally.

Red — Severe
Two or more independent Tier A sources, this drug in the cohort, the nutrient directly measured, consistent direction, clinically meaningful magnitude, a named mechanism, no substantial contradicting Tier A evidence.
Orange — Moderate
At least one Tier A source with this drug in the cohort showing a real but bounded deficit: an exposure window, a subgroup, low frequency, or a functional rather than circulating deficit.
Yellow — Low
Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction.
Not graded — disclosed evidence gap
Nothing has been measured here, so this finding cannot be graded. That does not establish either safety or harm, and it is not the same as a White result.Source definition: Not gradeable under the rules above because nothing has been measured. Published as a documented gap, never as reassurance that there is no effect.

What the research found

Selenium: myocardial tissue level only, post-mortem, class extrapolation from the active metabolite meprobamate

Yellow — Low

See study details

In one post-mortem study, myocardial selenium was significantly lower than in controls in patients treated with neuroleptic drugs or meprobamate, with no change in brain or liver; carisoprodol itself was not studied and no circulating selenium was measured.

Full detail, limits and 1 references

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: No change in brain or liver selenium [12]. No study of selenium in carisoprodol users was found in the PubMed listings that opened [18].
  • At-risk subgroups: None established. The study population was sudden-death cases with psychiatric treatment and cardiac pathology.

Direction

Depletion signal in a tissue compartment (heart), unconfirmed. An autopsy tissue level is not a dietary deficiency and not a serum level.

Class extrapolation

CLASS EXTRAPOLATION (active metabolite). Cohort test: meprobamate, the active metabolite of carisoprodol, was in the studied population; carisoprodol itself was NOT. Tier C for this drug, capped at yellow (Hard Rule 6). Meprobamate was grouped in the abstract with neuroleptic drugs; the size of any meprobamate-only subgroup was not seen.

Regulatory status

No selenium content in the carisoprodol labels retrieved [1][2][3] or in the meprobamate label text opened [10].

Population evidence

Hamdan L et al., J Trace Elem Med Biol 2012 (PMID 22664334): post-mortem selenium by electrothermal atomic absorption in heart, brain and liver of sudden-death cases with psychotropic treatment. Histology showed dilated cardiomyopathy in 45%, left ventricular hypertrophy in 36% and ischemic coronary disease in 18%. A significant reduction of myocardial selenium versus controls was seen in patients treated with neuroleptics or meprobamate; no change in brain or liver. Numbers of cases and controls, effect sizes and any meprobamate-only result were not in the text retrieved. Abstract read from a PubMed listing through a summarizing fetch tool; full text not opened [12].

Mechanism

The authors propose that low myocardial selenium lowers glutathione peroxidase activity. This was not tested in the abstract, and no mechanism by which meprobamate would lower tissue selenium is stated.

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits Confounding by indication and by disease is presumed and not excluded (Hard Rule 6): the cases were sudden deaths with cardiomyopathy, many on neuroleptics, and post-mortem tissue levels can reflect cause of death and sampling. The duration of meprobamate treatment was not seen, and carisoprodol is usually a 2 to 3 week course [7]. Tier C for carisoprodol. Framing caution Do not present carisoprodol as lowering selenium. This is a metabolite-level, post-mortem, confounded observation. No supplement is implied; selenium excess is itself harmful.

Heme biosynthesis (acute intermittent porphyria): labeled contraindication, a safety flag in a susceptible subgroup, not a depletion

Yellow — Low

See study details

Carisoprodol labels contraindicate use in people with a history of acute intermittent porphyria, and the meprobamate label and LiverTox report porphyria exacerbation with meprobamate; no mechanism and no measured heme-pathway or nutrient outcome was retrieved.

Full detail, limits and 1 references

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: No source opened classifies carisoprodol on a porphyria drug-safety database; the search of the APF page was a text search through a summarizer and is not a confirmation of absence from the live database.
  • At-risk subgroups: People with acute intermittent porphyria (contraindicated by label); people with carbamate hypersensitivity (contraindicated by label).

Direction

Disease-trigger safety flag in a defined subgroup. Not a depletion and not a nutrient deficiency (Hard Rule 2); no nutrient is named, and nothing here implies that intake of any nutrient should change.

Class extrapolation

The contraindication is stated in the carisoprodol labels themselves (carisoprodol in the label cohort). The supporting meprobamate statements (label text and LiverTox) are CLASS EXTRAPOLATION from the active metabolite: carisoprodol was not the subject of those sources. Capped at yellow.

Regulatory status

"Carisoprodol Tablets are contraindicated in patients with a history of acute intermittent porphyria or a hypersensitivity reaction to a carbamate such as meprobamate" [1][2][3]. The meprobamate label text opened lists "Exacerbation of porphyric symptoms" as an adverse reaction and acute intermittent porphyria as a contraindication [10]. LiverTox for meprobamate: "clinical relapses of acute intermittent porphyria have occurred with drugs other than barbiturates, including chlordiazepoxide and meprobamate" [9].

Population evidence

No cohort or case series was retrieved. A PubMed listing for carisoprodol with porphyria terms returned one record, Hazen PG, J Am Acad Dermatol 1994 (PMID 7915729), "Pseudoporphyria in a patient receiving carisoprodol/aspirin therapy"; no abstract was available, the exposure was a carisoprodol-aspirin combination, and pseudoporphyria is a different term from acute porphyria, so it is not used as evidence [16]. The American Porphyria Foundation drug safety database print page (read in two parts through a summarizing fetch tool) did not list carisoprodol or meprobamate in the text read [26].

Mechanism

Not stated in any source opened.

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits The label contraindication is Tier A for the contraindication itself, but the dossier grades nutrient causation, and no nutrient or heme-pathway marker was measured. Graded yellow as a context flag so the warning stays visible; it is a drug-safety statement, not a deficiency claim. Framing caution Do not present this as carisoprodol causing a vitamin or mineral problem. It is a label contraindication for one disease. Supplements are not a remedy and none is implied.

Dietary intake: labeled nausea, vomiting and epigastric discomfort, no intake or nutrient measured (context flag)

Yellow — Low

See study details

Carisoprodol labeling lists nausea, vomiting and epigastric discomfort (and drowsiness at 6 to 17%), so a changed-intake mechanism (class H) is present, but no appetite or weight reaction is labeled and no study measured food or nutrient intake.

Full detail and limits

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: No intake, weight or nutrient measurement in carisoprodol users was found. The drugs.com food-interaction page lists alcohol only [22].
  • At-risk subgroups: None identified. Users combining alcohol or other sedatives are at higher risk of CNS depression [1][22].

Direction

Context flag, neutral. An adverse reaction is not a nutrient deficiency (Hard Rule 2); no nutrient is named and nothing implies that intake should increase.

Regulatory status

Postmarketing gastrointestinal: "Nausea, vomiting, and epigastric discomfort"; clinical trials: drowsiness 17%, dizziness 7%, headache 3% at 350 mg versus placebo. Appetite, weight and nutrition reactions were not found in the label text read [1][2][3].

Population evidence

None on intake. LiverTox and StatPearls summaries contain no nutritional content [7][8].

Mechanism

Not stated. Nausea and sedation are plausible routes to reduced eating.

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits Graded yellow only as a context flag, and the label itself carries no appetite signal. Confounding by indication (acute pain, injury) and by co-medication is not excluded and no comparison with non-users exists. Framing caution Do not present carisoprodol as causing malnutrition or any deficiency. No supplement is implied.

The five body-system areas

Each finding is counted once, in a single area. Where a study is mentioned in a second area it is context only.

Mitochondrial Burden

Each finding below is counted once, in this area only.

Mitochondrial burden: class extrapolation from meprobamate, mixed direction, one overdose case and one rat study

Yellow — Low

See study details

A single 1981 four-drug overdose report (meprobamate among the drugs) described mitochondrial reactions in muscle on electron microscopy, while a rat brain study found meprobamate partly normalized stress-impaired mitochondrial respiration; carisoprodol was in neither.

Full detail, limits and 2 references

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: No carisoprodol mitochondrial study was found [18]. The overdose case involved four drugs, one patient and no control, so attribution to meprobamate is impossible, and carisoprodol was absent. The Tox21 mitochondrial membrane potential screen was not opened (bot verification page), so a per-compound hit or miss for carisoprodol is unknown [30].
  • At-risk subgroups: None identified.

Direction

Mixed: a possible burden signal in massive multi-drug overdose, and a reverse-direction (partly restorative) signal in an animal stress model. Neither is attributable to carisoprodol.

Class extrapolation

CLASS EXTRAPOLATION (active metabolite). Cohort test: meprobamate, the active metabolite of carisoprodol, was in the studied population; carisoprodol itself was NOT. Tier C for this drug, capped at yellow (Hard Rule 6).

Regulatory status

No mitochondrial content in the labels retrieved [1][2][3].

Population evidence

(a) Hackl JM et al., Wien Klin Wochenschr 1981 (PMID 6117987): one 51-year-old man with manic-depressive psychosis took an overdose of tolperisone (Mydocalm), dipenzepine, meprobamate and nitrazepam; fever, rigidity, tachycardia, arrhythmias, cyanosis, respiratory and metabolic acidosis, myoglobinemia and CPK up to 2790 U/L; electron microscopy of muscle showed "signs of myolysis and mitochondrial reactions with pleoconic hyperplasia"; the authors suggest malignant hyperthermia from the drug combination [15]. (b) Kresiun VI, Ukr Biokhim Zh 1984 (PMID 6151270): in rats, chronic stress inhibited respiration and phosphorylation in brain mitochondrial fractions; nicotinic acid and GABA derivatives restored activity almost fully, while meprobamate, mebicar and chlordiazepoxide had a "less pronounced normalizing effect" [13]. Both read as abstracts from PubMed listings through a summarizing fetch tool.

Mechanism

None named for meprobamate in either abstract.

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits Tier C for carisoprodol. The case is Tier B-style (case report) for a different drug mixture. The rat study is a stress-correction model, where the drug appears protective, not a toxicity test. Confounding by indication does not apply to the animal study but does to the case (psychiatric illness, other drugs). Framing caution Do not say carisoprodol damages mitochondria. The only signals concern its metabolite, one is a confounded overdose case and the other points the opposite way. No supplement is implied.

Oxidative Stress

Each finding below is counted once, in this area only.

Oxidative stress: class extrapolation, an inference from one selenium paper, no redox marker measured

Yellow — Low

See study details

No oxidative-stress marker was measured in carisoprodol or meprobamate users; the only statement is the Hamdan authors' inference that low myocardial selenium could reduce glutathione peroxidase activity and raise oxidative stress.

Full detail and limits

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: A PubMed listing for carisoprodol with mitochondria, oxidative, hemolysis, iron, copper or microbiota terms returned 6 records, none biological redox work [18]. Two were titles read from the listing only: an analytical electrochemistry paper on the high oxidation potential of carisoprodol at a boron-doped diamond electrode (The Analyst 2017, PMID 28832032) and a 1966 paper on P-450 oxidation of drugs in liver microsomes (J Biochem, PMID 4381416). Neither is oxidative stress in an organism, and neither is used.
  • At-risk subgroups: None identified.

Direction

Unproven potential increase (inference), neutral on the data. Not a nutrient deficiency.

Class extrapolation

CLASS EXTRAPOLATION (active metabolite). Cohort test: meprobamate, the active metabolite of carisoprodol, was in the studied population; carisoprodol itself was NOT. Tier C for this drug, capped at yellow (Hard Rule 6). Counted once with the Selenium entry (see Overlap map).

Regulatory status

No oxidative or antioxidant content in the labels retrieved [1][2][3].

Population evidence

None measured. The abstract states that reduced glutathione peroxidase activity "can result in augmented oxidative stress in myocardial cells and myocardiopathy leading to sudden death"; no enzyme activity, lipid peroxidation or antioxidant capacity was reported [12]. A PubMed listing for meprobamate with oxidative stress returned 3 records: the selenium paper and two rat brain energy-metabolism papers [12][13][14][27].

Mechanism

Named only as a hypothesis (selenium to glutathione peroxidase). Not tested.

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits Graded yellow only because a Tier C source speaks to the category; it is the weakest yellow in this dossier and should not be read as a redox finding. Confounding as for Selenium. Framing caution Do not present carisoprodol as an oxidant or as depleting antioxidant defenses. No marker was measured and no supplement is implied.

Copper and Iron Balance

Copper and iron are assessed separately. Nothing here is counted twice.

Copper

Not graded — disclosed evidence gap

See study details

No evidence was retrieved that carisoprodol or meprobamate alters copper status, absorption, excretion or ceruloplasmin.

Full detail and limits

What the grade means here: Nothing has been measured here, so this finding cannot be graded. That does not establish either safety or harm, and it is not the same as a White result. Ungraded

Limits on what this shows

  • Why no grade: Dual condition met: no Tier B or C evidence for copper and no circulating carisoprodol copper claim found. This is a disclosed gap, not a finding of safety. Re-check when access returns.

What was searched

PubMed listing carisoprodol AND (mitochondria OR oxidative OR hemolysis OR iron OR copper OR microbiota): 6 records, none on copper (an electrochemistry paper, a nocturnal leg cramps review, a rat spinal cord paper, a P-450 microsome paper, an agricultural runoff paper, a canine diuretic paper) [18]. Listings carisoprodol AND (vitamin OR deficiency OR zinc OR magnesium OR folate OR copper OR iron OR ferritin) returned a generic trending-articles page (uninterpretable). carisoprodol AND (iron OR copper OR ferritin) and meprobamate AND copper were refused with HTTP 429 and not repeated. Web search "carisoprodol Soma vitamin B12 OR magnesium OR folic acid OR iron depletion muscle relaxant drug-induced nutrient depletion list" was refused (budget exhausted). An earlier web search for carisoprodol nutrient deficiency or depletion returned abuse, withdrawal and EMA referral pages (titles only, not opened). Labels and the drugs.com food page list no mineral interaction [1][2][22]; a chiropractic depletion handout and a US Pharmacist depletion article do not mention carisoprodol, Soma, meprobamate or muscle relaxants [23][24]. Repair pass 2026-10-07: PubMed listing "meprobamate AND copper" opened and returned zero results [32]. Carisoprodol AND copper was refused (HTTP 429) on three attempts spaced several minutes apart and was not completed. Other phrasings (ceruloplasmin, serum copper) could not be run: Crossref and OpenAlex search endpoints returned HTTP 429 and WebSearch reported its shared budget used up.

Channel outcomes

PubMed HTML listings opened intermittently and were then repeatedly refused with HTTP 429 (some requests could not be repeated because the fetch tool asked not to retry). WebSearch worked for part of the review and then reported its shared budget used up. DailyMed, WHO ATC, NCBI Bookshelf, drugs.com, Wikipedia and a PubMed Central listing opened; two PubMed Central articles returned a bot-verification page. Europe PMC, Semantic Scholar and Crossref search were not used (blocked-host list); OpenAlex single-record lookups were refused with HTTP 429 once and not repeated.

Gap type

Genuine gap on every channel that opened, now including a zero-result PubMed listing for the active metabolite meprobamate AND copper [32]. Tooling-limited for the carisoprodol AND copper listing, ceruloplasmin and serum-copper phrasings, and for Europe PMC and Semantic Scholar. Kept independent of Iron (Hard Rule 7).

Iron

Not graded — disclosed evidence gap

See study details

No evidence was retrieved that carisoprodol or meprobamate alters iron absorption, stores, ferritin or iron-deficiency anemia.

Full detail and limits

What the grade means here: Nothing has been measured here, so this finding cannot be graded. That does not establish either safety or harm, and it is not the same as a White result. Ungraded

Limits on what this shows

  • Why no grade: Dual condition met: no Tier B or C evidence on iron indices and no circulating carisoprodol iron claim found. Not a finding of safety. Hemolysis and blood-count outcomes are not double-counted here (see Overlap map).

What was searched

The same carisoprodol listing as above returned no iron record [18]. carisoprodol AND (hemolysis OR anemia): 1 record, G6PD Hillbrow, whose abstract names paracetamol and chlormezanone and not carisoprodol [17]. Meprobamate AND hemolysis: 2 metadata-only records (1963, 1964) with no abstracts [28]. The combined carisoprodol vitamin/iron listing returned a generic page, and the targeted iron listings were refused (HTTP 429). Labels list no iron, antacid or mineral interaction [1][2][3]. Labeled pancytopenia and aplastic anemia are outcomes carried under Oxygen delivery/utilization and are not iron findings (Hard Rule 2). Repair pass 2026-10-07: PubMed listing "meprobamate AND iron" opened and returned 6 records, none on iron status: a 2016 iron-catalyzed carbamate synthesis chemistry paper, a 1988 activated charcoal review (iron listed as a poorly adsorbed substance), a 2016 wastewater paper, and three 1964 to 1970 records with no abstract (lymphadenopathy due to drugs; restless legs syndrome; mongolism therapy), whose relevance to iron status is unknown and which were not used [33]. Carisoprodol AND iron was refused (HTTP 429) on repeated attempts and was not completed; ferritin and serum-iron phrasings could not be run (Crossref, OpenAlex and WebSearch refused).

Channel outcomes

PubMed HTML listings opened intermittently and were then repeatedly refused with HTTP 429 (some requests could not be repeated because the fetch tool asked not to retry). WebSearch worked for part of the review and then reported its shared budget used up. DailyMed, WHO ATC, NCBI Bookshelf, drugs.com, Wikipedia and a PubMed Central listing opened; two PubMed Central articles returned a bot-verification page. Europe PMC, Semantic Scholar and Crossref search were not used (blocked-host list); OpenAlex single-record lookups were refused with HTTP 429 once and not repeated.

Gap type

Genuine gap on the channels that opened, including the meprobamate AND iron PubMed listing [33]. Tooling-limited for the carisoprodol AND iron listing, ferritin and serum-iron phrasings, and unused databases.

Gut Microbiome Risk

Each finding below is counted once, in this area only.

Gut microbiome risk

Not graded — disclosed evidence gap

See study details

No evidence was retrieved on carisoprodol or meprobamate and gut microbiome composition, diversity or function.

Full detail and limits

What the grade means here: Nothing has been measured here, so this finding cannot be graded. That does not establish either safety or harm, and it is not the same as a White result. Ungraded

Limits on what this shows

  • Why no grade: Dual condition met: no Tier B or C evidence, and no circulating microbiome claim for carisoprodol found. Hepatic metabolism and mixed renal and non-renal elimination mean no gut-exposure mechanism is documented, which is not evidence of absence.

What was searched

PubMed listing carisoprodol AND (microbiota OR microbiome OR dysbiosis OR bacteria OR bacterial): 1 record, a 2021 PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases paper on nematode and Wolbachia genetics, an incidental match ("Soma" as a word) with no carisoprodol content [19]. Web search "carisoprodol gut microbiome OR microbiota OR fecal muscle relaxant" returned a muscle-strength fecal-transplant paper (PMC10779158, not opened), drug database pages and a Spanish agency safety note on abuse and dependence, which was opened and contains no microbiome or nutrition content [25]. Two large drug-microbiome resources were opened through the fetch tool: Maier et al. 2018 (1,197 drugs, 40 gut strains), in which carisoprodol, meprobamate and skeletal muscle relaxants did not appear in the text retrieved, with supplementary tables not accessible [20], and Vich Vila et al. 2020 (41 drug categories in 1,883 samples), which analyzed benzodiazepine derivatives but no muscle relaxants [21]. Meprobamate-specific microbiome searches were not run to completion (PubMed 429). Repair pass 2026-10-07: PubMed listing "meprobamate AND gut microbiota" opened and returned zero results [31]. Carisoprodol AND microbiome was refused (HTTP 429) and not completed; dysbiosis and 16S phrasings could not be run (Crossref, OpenAlex and WebSearch refused).

Channel outcomes

PubMed HTML listings opened intermittently and were then repeatedly refused with HTTP 429 (some requests could not be repeated because the fetch tool asked not to retry). WebSearch worked for part of the review and then reported its shared budget used up. DailyMed, WHO ATC, NCBI Bookshelf, drugs.com, Wikipedia and a PubMed Central listing opened; two PubMed Central articles returned a bot-verification page. Europe PMC, Semantic Scholar and Crossref search were not used (blocked-host list); OpenAlex single-record lookups were refused with HTTP 429 once and not repeated.

Gap type

Genuine gap on the channels that opened, including two large drug-microbiome resources that do not list this drug. A zero-result PubMed listing for meprobamate AND gut microbiota was obtained in the repair pass [31]. Residual limits: Maier supplementary drug tables not accessible, a carisoprodol microbiome listing under alternate phrasings not obtained, and a muscle-strength microbiota paper not opened.

Oxygen and ATP Output

Oxygen delivery and ATP production are assessed separately. Nothing here is counted twice.

ATP production: class extrapolation, reverse direction, rat brain oxidative phosphorylation and Mg2+-ATPase only

Yellow — Low

See study details

In rat stress models, meprobamate partly restored stress-impaired brain oxidative phosphorylation and Mg2+-ATPase activity; no ATP concentration, flux or human energy outcome was measured for carisoprodol or meprobamate.

Full detail, limits and 2 references

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: No ATP-level, respiration or membrane-potential study of carisoprodol was found [18]. Authorship of the two rat papers was not confirmed to differ, so they are counted as one line of evidence.
  • At-risk subgroups: None identified.

Direction

Reverse (partly restorative against stress-induced impairment). Not a depletion. Mg2+-ATPase activity and phosphorylation efficiency are surrogates, not ATP synthesis rates.

Class extrapolation

CLASS EXTRAPOLATION (active metabolite). Cohort test: meprobamate, the active metabolite of carisoprodol, was in the studied population; carisoprodol itself was NOT. Tier C for this drug, capped at yellow (Hard Rule 6).

Regulatory status

No energy-metabolism content in the labels retrieved [1][2][3]. Drowsiness (6 to 17%) is labeled CNS pharmacology, not an ATP finding.

Population evidence

(a) PMID 6686465, Biull Eksp Biol Med 1983, "Regulation of oxidative phosphorylation as a possible method of normalizing cerebral metabolism": stress "dramatically inhibit[s] and dissociate[s] oxidative phosphorylation" in rat brain; meprobamate showed modest effectiveness compared with nicotinic acid and GABA derivatives in promoting recovery. Authors and full abstract were not seen; read through a summarizing fetch tool [14]. (b) Kresiun 1984 (PMID 6151270), as in the Mitochondrial entry: stress reduced brain energy stores and Mg2+-ATPase activity, with meprobamate giving less pronounced normalization [13].

Mechanism

None named for meprobamate. The papers frame psychotropic agents as possible "stress-protectors for normalization of energy metabolism of brain neurons".

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits Tier C for carisoprodol, animal only, decades old, and read from abstracts via a summarizer. Meprobamate was a weaker corrector than the comparators, so the signal is small even in the model. Framing caution Do not say carisoprodol raises or lowers cellular energy. This is a rat stress-model observation on its metabolite, not evidence about people, and no supplement is implied.

Oxygen delivery/utilization: labeled leukopenia and pancytopenia, red-cell outcome not reported (context flag)

Yellow — Low

See study details

The US carisoprodol labels list leukopenia and pancytopenia among postmarketing reactions and the meprobamate label lists agranulocytosis and aplastic anemia, but no hemoglobin, hematocrit, hemolysis, methemoglobin or oxygen-delivery measurement for carisoprodol was found.

Full detail, limits and 1 references

What the grade means here: Mechanistic plausibility only (Tier B), or class extrapolation (Tier C) with no drug-specific human status data; also used for context flags and interactions running the other direction. Yellow

Limits on what this shows

  • Key null findings: No carisoprodol hemolysis, methemoglobin or anemia record was found. Two broad web and PubMed attempts were limited (see access note).
  • At-risk subgroups: People with prior carbamate hypersensitivity (contraindicated by label).

Direction

Context flag, neutral for oxygen delivery. A rare labeled hematologic adverse reaction is an outcome, not an oxygen-delivery deficiency and not iron deficiency (Hard Rule 2). Pancytopenia in the label carries no frequency, hemoglobin value or time course.

Class extrapolation

Carisoprodol labels (leukopenia, pancytopenia) are drug-specific [1][2][3]. The agranulocytosis and aplastic anemia wording is from the meprobamate label text (reproduced on a drugs.com professional page) and from a drug monograph listing hypersensitivity-type reactions to meprobamate [4][10]; that part is CLASS EXTRAPOLATION from the active metabolite (carisoprodol not in that label cohort), capped at yellow.

Regulatory status

Postmarketing, hematologic: "Leukopenia, pancytopenia" [2][3]. Meprobamate: "Agranulocytosis and aplastic anemia have been reported. These cases rarely were fatal. Rare cases of thrombocytopenic purpura have been reported" [10]. A drug monograph adds leukopenia, acute nonthrombocytopenic purpura, petechiae, ecchymoses and eosinophilia attributed to hypersensitivity to the meprobamate metabolite [4].

Population evidence

No study. PubMed listing carisoprodol with hemolysis or anemia returned one record, "G6PD hillbrow" (PMID 1201217, Br J Haematol 1975); its abstract concerns an overdose of Beserol (paracetamol and chlormezanone) and does not name carisoprodol, so it is not used [17]. A listing for meprobamate with hemolysis returned two metadata-only records from 1963 and 1964 (a Lancet tetanus paper and a Danish suicide-attempt paper) with no abstracts; not used [28].

Mechanism

Hypersensitivity to the meprobamate moiety is stated in the monograph [4]; no oxygen-delivery mechanism is named.

Counter-evidence held on record

Counter-evidence and limits The labeled reactions are white-cell and platelet events plus a bare "pancytopenia", not an oxygen-carrying measurement. Confounding by co-medication and indication is not excludable from a label list. The DailyMed meprobamate label itself was not opened. Framing caution Do not present carisoprodol as causing anemia or low oxygen delivery. A rare labeled blood-count reaction is a drug safety event, not a nutrient finding, and no supplement is implied.

Claims checked and not supported

These circulate online for this medication. They are listed here only so they can be answered, never as findings, and they are not graded.

A claim with no supporting evidence is not necessarily disproven. Where evidence actually argues against a claim, that is stated below.

  • No circulating carisoprodol nutrient-depletion claim located

    Where it comes from: Pages opened: drugs.com carisoprodol food and supplement page (alcohol only) [22]; a chiropractic-clinic depletion handout and a US Pharmacist depletion article, neither of which mentions carisoprodol, Soma, meprobamate or muscle relaxants [23][24]; drugs.com professional and monograph pages (no depletion statement) [3][4]. One consumer page (a Livestrong article titled "Soma and metabolism") appeared in search results and could not be opened (the site blocks automated fetch). Web search for carisoprodol with nutrient deficiency or depletion returned abuse and withdrawal literature; the later search for vitamin and mineral depletion lists was refused when the search budget ran out. Retailer and handbook sites were not enumerated.

    Why it fails: There is nothing to rebut from the sources reached. This is not a finding that no such claim exists elsewhere; it is a tooling-limited empty result. If a claim (for example about B vitamins, magnesium, anemia or "low energy") is found later, grade it against the evidence recorded here, which currently supports no depletion of any nutrient for carisoprodol itself.

How the body handles this medication

Metabolism and enzymes
"The major pathway of carisoprodol metabolism is via the liver by cytochrome enzyme CYP2C19 to form meprobamate." After a 350 mg dose, meprobamate reaches about 30% of the level of a direct 400 mg meprobamate dose. CYP2C19 poor metabolizers had about 4-fold higher carisoprodol exposure and about 50% lower meprobamate exposure (3 to 5% of Caucasians and African Americans, 15 to 20% of Asians). The sections retrieved describe no CYP induction or inhibition by carisoprodol itself. A carisoprodol pharmacokinetic trial with CYP2C19 phenotype data exists but was not opened [29]; Wikipedia gives the same pathway [6].[1][2] DailyMed carisoprodol tablet labels (read via summarizing fetch tool)
Elimination and half-life
Terminal half-life of carisoprodol about 2 hours; meprobamate about 10 hours. Eliminated by renal and non-renal routes; dialyzable. A StatPearls summary notes accumulation risk of the longer-lived metabolite with extended use.[1][2][8]
Absorption and food
Peak concentration at 1.5 to 2 hours (as summarized). "Co-administration of a high-fat meal with SOMA (350 mg tablet) had no effect on the pharmacokinetics of carisoprodol." No absorption transporter is named in the sections retrieved.[2][3] label text, the second via a drugs.com professional reproduction
Renal and hepatic impairment
Label: caution in impaired renal or hepatic function; a drug monograph states accumulation can occur with hepatic or renal impairment.[1][2][4]
Drug interactions (direction: drug to drug)
Additive sedation with alcohol, benzodiazepines, opioids and tricyclic antidepressants. CYP2C19 inhibitors (omeprazole, fluvoxamine) raise carisoprodol exposure and inducers (rifampin, St. John's wort) lower it. No vitamin, mineral or antacid interaction appears in the sections retrieved; the drugs.com food page lists alcohol only.[2][4][22]
Course of therapy
Indicated for acute musculoskeletal pain, typically 2 to 3 weeks (LiverTox). Short exposure limits the window for any chronic nutrient effect and keeps confounding by indication (acute pain, injury, immobility, co-prescribed opioids or alcohol) in play for any signal.[7]

What the research says is worth watching

General information from the medication label and the studies above. It is not personal medical advice, and any change belongs with your prescriber.

  • Before use / safety

    Porphyria and carbamate history

    Carisoprodol is contraindicated by label in people with a history of acute intermittent porphyria or hypersensitivity to a carbamate such as meprobamate [1][2][3]. Confirm this history before use. This is a drug-safety check, not a nutrient test.

  • Lab / only if prompted

    Blood count after unexplained symptoms

    Leukopenia and pancytopenia are labeled postmarketing reactions [2][3], and agranulocytosis and aplastic anemia are labeled for meprobamate [10]. A blood count is worth considering with unexplained fever, sore throat, bruising, petechiae or pallor. No routine count is indicated for nutrient reasons.

  • Genotype / interactions

    CYP2C19 status and interacting drugs

    Poor metabolizers have about 4-fold higher carisoprodol exposure; omeprazole and fluvoxamine raise exposure and rifampin and St. John's wort lower it [1][2]. These are drug-to-drug effects. No supplement separation interval applies because no vitamin or mineral interaction was found.

  • CNS / hepatic / renal

    Sedation, alcohol, accumulation

    Alcohol, opioids, benzodiazepines and other CNS depressants add to sedation [1][22]. Caution applies in hepatic or renal impairment [1][2][4]. Persistent sedation or vomiting that reduces eating is worth raising with a prescriber.

  • Nutrient labs

    Selenium, iron, copper

    No nutrient test is indicated by carisoprodol itself on current evidence. The single tissue selenium signal is post-mortem, concerns the metabolite and is confounded [12]; it is not a basis for testing or supplementation. Baseline testing depends on the person's other drugs and conditions.

  • Duration / pregnancy

    Short courses and pregnancy

    Labeled use is for acute musculoskeletal pain over 2 to 3 weeks [7]; abuse, dependence and withdrawal are labeled concerns [1][25]. The label summary reports no identified birth-defect risk from decades of use and reduced fetal weights in animals at 2.6 to 4.1 times the maximum recommended dose [1].

Overlap map, to prevent double counting

Entries resting on the same underlying source, mechanism or empty search.

  • Selenium

    Shares evidence with: Oxidative stress

    Note: Both rest on one paper, Hamdan 2012 [12]. The oxidative stress entry is only the authors' glutathione peroxidase inference; no redox marker was measured. It is one source counted once, not two lines of evidence.

  • Mitochondrial burden

    Shares evidence with: ATP production

    Note: Both cite Kresiun 1984 (PMID 6151270) [13]. Mitochondrial burden adds a separate overdose case [15]; ATP production adds PMID 6686465 [14]. The two rat papers may come from one research line, so ATP production is effectively one line of animal evidence. Kept as independent entries (Hard Rule 7).

  • Oxidative stress

    Shares evidence with: Mitochondrial burden; ATP production

    Note: A PubMed listing for meprobamate with oxidative stress terms returned the same three records used in the Selenium, Mitochondrial burden and ATP production entries [12][13][14]; no independent oxidative stress source exists.

  • Oxygen delivery/utilization

    Shares evidence with: Iron; Copper; Heme biosynthesis

    Note: Labeled pancytopenia and aplastic anemia are outcomes with no iron, copper or hemoglobin measurement; the iron and copper entries are ungraded and rest on the same empty hemolysis and iron searches. The porphyria entry shares no source with the hematologic entry, although both come from the same label sections [1][2][3].

  • Copper

    Shares evidence with: Iron

    Note: Both were searched with the same combined PubMed listing and web queries, which returned nothing on either mineral. Kept as two independent entries (Hard Rule 7).

  • Heme biosynthesis; Dietary intake

    Shares evidence with: None

    Note: Rest on label statements and LiverTox [1][2][3][9][10] only; not shared with any other entry.

All references used above
  1. CARISOPRODOL tablets, USP, 350 mg (Granulation Technology, Inc.), DailyMed. — Regulatory label (Tier A). Metabolism by CYP2C19, half-lives, poor metabolizers, porphyria contraindication, hematologic and gastrointestinal reactions, interactions.Read through a summarizing fetch tool; quotations are the tool's rendering of the label. A DailyMed search listing (5 carisoprodol results) was used only to find set IDs.
  2. CARISOPRODOL (Altura Pharmaceuticals, Inc., repackaged), DailyMed. — Regulatory label (Tier A). Sections 4, 6, 7, 8 and 12.3: contraindications, adverse reactions, interactions, CYP2C19 poor metabolizers, pharmacokinetics.Summarized by the fetch tool. Absence statements ("no mention of anemia, appetite loss or nutritional deficiencies") are the tool's reading of the label, not a verified full-text search.
  3. Soma (carisoprodol), professional drug information, Drugs.com. — Aggregator reproducing label text (Tier D as a site; used for label wording only). Adverse reactions, porphyria contraindication, high-fat meal statement.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Not used to support any grade on its own.
  4. Carisoprodol (monograph), Drugs.com. — Tier D aggregator monograph. Accumulation in hepatic or renal impairment; hematologic reactions attributed to hypersensitivity to meprobamate; interactions.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Not used to support any grade on its own.
  5. WHO Collaborating Centre, ATC/DDD Index: carisoprodol, M03BA02, DDD 1.4 g oral. — Reference index. ATC group M03BA, carbamic acid esters, centrally acting muscle relaxants.
  6. Wikipedia: Carisoprodol. — Reference summary (not a primary source). Used only to cross-check CYP2C19 metabolism, brands and legal status.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Not used to support any grade.
  7. Carisoprodol. LiverTox: Clinical and Research Information on Drug-Induced Liver Injury, NCBI Bookshelf (NBK548829). — Established pharmacology reference. Carbamate derivative similar to meprobamate; acute use 2 to 3 weeks; likelihood score E; no nutritional, hematologic or mitochondrial content in the summary.Read through a summarizing fetch tool.
  8. Carisoprodol. StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf (NBK553077). — Review (Tier C-level reference). CYP2C19 metabolism to meprobamate, half-lives, sedation rates, overdose, porphyria contraindication.Read through a summarizing fetch tool; the summary mislabeled meprobamate as a benzodiazepine-class drug, which was discarded.
  9. Meprobamate. LiverTox, NCBI Bookshelf (NBK548721). — Established pharmacology reference for the active metabolite. GABA-A binding; "clinical relapses of acute intermittent porphyria have occurred with drugs other than barbiturates, including chlordiazepoxide and meprobamate"; no hematologic or mitochondrial content.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Meprobamate is the metabolite; carisoprodol is not the subject.
  10. Meprobamate, professional drug information, Drugs.com. — Aggregator reproducing meprobamate label text. Hematologic reactions (agranulocytosis, aplastic anemia, thrombocytopenic purpura), "exacerbation of porphyric symptoms", acute intermittent porphyria contraindication.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. The DailyMed meprobamate label itself was not opened. Metabolite source, used only as CLASS EXTRAPOLATION.
  11. Carisoprodol-mediated modulation of GABA-A receptors: in vitro and in vivo studies (title as returned; PMC2672873). — Whole-cell patch clamp on human alpha1 beta2 gamma2 GABA-A receptors in HEK293 cells plus animal behavior (Tier B for the pharmacology; not a nutrient study). EC50 about 142 uM for allosteric potentiation; direct activation larger than meprobamate at equivalent concentrations.Read through a summarizing fetch tool; authors, journal and year were not shown in the text retrieved. Used only for the mechanism clarification.
  12. Hamdan L, et al. Involvement of neuroleptic drugs in selenium deficiency and sudden death of cardiac origin. J Trace Elem Med Biol 2012. — Post-mortem study of selenium in heart, brain and liver in sudden death with psychotropic treatment; meprobamate in the cohort, carisoprodol not (Tier C for carisoprodol). PMID 22664334.Abstract only, from a PubMed listing read through a summarizing fetch tool. Numbers of cases and controls were not in the text retrieved. Full text not opened.
  13. Kresiun VI. Mg2+-ATPase activity of brain mitochondria fractions in chronic stress and its correction by psychotropic agents. Ukr Biokhim Zh 1984. — Rat study (Tier C for carisoprodol; meprobamate in the cohort, carisoprodol not). PMID 6151270.Abstract only, from a PubMed listing via a summarizing fetch tool. The listing gave the author as "Kresiun VI" and the year as 1984 (journal volume 1978 in the record header).
  14. Regulation of oxidative phosphorylation as a possible method of normalizing cerebral metabolism. Biull Eksp Biol Med 1983. — Rat brain study (Tier C for carisoprodol; meprobamate in the cohort). PMID 6686465.Title and a summarized finding only, from a PubMed listing via a summarizing fetch tool. Authors and the full abstract were not seen.
  15. Hackl JM, et al. Possible malignant hyperthermia as reaction to overdose of myotonolytic, antidepressive and sedative drugs. Wien Klin Wochenschr 1981. — Single case report; overdose of tolperisone, dipenzepine, meprobamate and nitrazepam (Tier C for carisoprodol; carisoprodol not involved). PMID 6117987.Abstract read from a PubMed listing via a summarizing fetch tool. One patient, four drugs: attribution to meprobamate is impossible.
  16. Hazen PG. Pseudoporphyria in a patient receiving carisoprodol/aspirin therapy. J Am Acad Dermatol 1994. — Case report on a carisoprodol-aspirin combination. PMID 7915729.Title, author and MeSH data only; no abstract available. Not used as evidence.
  17. G6PD Hillbrow: a new variant of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase associated with drug-induced haemolytic anaemia. Br J Haematol 1975. — Case with overdose of Beserol (paracetamol and chlormezanone). PMID 1201217. Surfaced by the carisoprodol hemolysis search only through indexing.Abstract read via listing; carisoprodol is not named in it. Not used as evidence.
  18. PubMed listing: carisoprodol AND (mitochondria OR oxidative OR hemolysis OR iron OR copper OR microbiota), 6 records. — Search listing, not a study. Records: nocturnal leg cramps (Am Fam Physician 2012), electrochemistry of carisoprodol (Analyst 2017), spinal cord regeneration (1973), P-450 in liver microsomes (1966), pharmaceuticals in agricultural runoff (2005), antidiuretics in the dog (1976). None on any required category.Titles read through a summarizing fetch tool.
  19. PubMed listing: carisoprodol AND (microbiota OR microbiome OR dysbiosis OR bacteria OR bacterial), 1 record. — Search listing. One incidental record (PMID 33406151, a nematode and Wolbachia RNAseq paper, PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021) with no carisoprodol content.Read through a summarizing fetch tool.
  20. Maier L, et al. Extensive impact of non-antibiotic drugs on human gut bacteria. Nature 2018. — In vitro screen of 1,197 drugs against 40 gut bacterial strains. Carisoprodol, meprobamate and muscle relaxants did not appear in the text retrieved. DOI 10.1038/nature25979.PDF copy read through a summarizing fetch tool. Supplementary drug tables were not accessible, so absence from the screen is not confirmed. Not used as evidence.
  21. Vich Vila A, et al. Impact of commonly used drugs on the composition and metabolic function of the gut microbiota (2020; as supplied in the file title). — Cross-sectional meta-analysis of 3 Dutch cohorts, 41 drug categories, 1,883 samples. Benzodiazepine derivatives were analyzed; carisoprodol, meprobamate and muscle relaxants were not.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Carisoprodol not in the cohort; any class statement would not apply. Not used as evidence.
  22. Drugs.com. Carisoprodol food and supplement interactions. — Tier D consumer page. One interaction listed (alcohol); no vitamin or mineral. Used only to document the absence of a nutrient interaction claim.Read through a summarizing fetch tool.
  23. Nutrient depletion that arises from using prescribed medications (chiropractic clinic handout, PDF, 2025). — Tier D depletion overview. No mention of carisoprodol, Soma, meprobamate or muscle relaxants per the fetch tool.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Used only to document absence of a circulating claim.
  24. Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletions: What Pharmacists Need to Know. US Pharmacist. — Tier D narrative review. No mention of carisoprodol, Soma, meprobamate or muscle relaxants per the fetch tool.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Used only to document absence of a circulating claim.
  25. Agencia Espanola de Medicamentos y Productos Sanitarios. Nota informativa sobre carisoprodol (2005). — Regulatory safety note on abuse, dependence and withdrawal; treatment generally not to exceed fifteen days. No blood, porphyria or nutrition content.Read through a summarizing fetch tool.
  26. American Porphyria Foundation. Drug Safety Database, print version. — Drug safety classification database. In the text read (145,212 characters, read in two parts), no entry for carisoprodol, Soma, meprobamate, Miltown or Equanil was found; the muscle relaxant section listed other drugs.Read through a summarizing fetch tool; absence is not a confirmation that the live database lacks these drugs.
  27. PubMed listing: meprobamate AND mitochondria (3 records) and meprobamate AND oxidative stress (3 records). — Search listings, not studies. Records: PMIDs 499736 (chlorpromazine and imipramine on rat brain mitochondria, title only, meprobamate not shown in the part read), 6151270, 6117987, 6686465 and 22664334.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Record 499736 is not used.
  28. PubMed listing: meprobamate AND hemolysis (2 records). — Search listing, metadata only: Lancet 1964 haemorrhagic complications during treatment of tetanus (PMID 14102247) and Dan Med Bull 1963 suicide attempts with benzene derivatives (PMID 14016401).No abstracts available. Not used as evidence.
  29. Single and multiple dose PK-PD characterization for carisoprodol, Part I: pharmacokinetics, metabolites and 2C19 phenotype influence (PMC8836664; title as returned by search). — Healthy volunteer trial (Tier A for pharmacokinetics).NOT OPENED: the page returned a bot-verification challenge. Title only; no facts drawn from it.
  30. Profiling of the Tox21 chemical collection for mitochondrial function (PMC4286281). — Large qualitative screen of mitochondrial membrane potential. A per-compound result for carisoprodol is unknown.NOT OPENED: the page returned a bot-verification challenge. Not used.
  31. PubMed listing: meprobamate AND gut microbiota (0 results). — Search listing, opened 2026-10-07 in the repair pass; the page stated no results were found. Not evidence for or against an effect; it documents absence of indexed records for the active metabolite.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Not used as evidence.
  32. PubMed listing: meprobamate AND copper (0 results). — Search listing, opened 2026-10-07 in the repair pass; the page stated no results were found. Not evidence for or against an effect.Read through a summarizing fetch tool. Not used as evidence.
  33. PubMed listing: meprobamate AND iron (6 records). — Search listing, opened 2026-10-07 in the repair pass. PMIDs 27403875 (carbamate synthesis chemistry), 3285126 (activated charcoal in intoxications), 14197005 (lymphadenopathy due to drugs, no abstract), 27457673 (wastewater), 5468656 (restless legs syndrome, no abstract), 4248977 (mongolism therapy, no abstract). None addresses iron status with meprobamate or carisoprodol.Read through a summarizing fetch tool; individual records not opened. Not used as evidence.