pre-diabetes metformin

[bfb171]

Hi guys.
I am type 2 and take metformin and i also inject apidra and lantus.
My wife has just been told by her GP to take metformin because she's pre-diabetic. the strange bit is that I have been testing her BS levels over an extended period and she never registers above 7. Does anybody know if this is standard practice from GP's or is there another reason to take metformin? She has not been given a test machine and has not been told to monitor her levels.

 

[Safi]

First of all it is not at all uncommon for pre-diabetics & even diabetics to be told they don't need to monitor. That doesn't make it true of course & the advice you'll get here is to test if you can - how else will you know where you stand?

As to the Metformin, as far as I'm aware it is often prescribed to women with polycystic ovaries & is sometimes prescribed to pre-diabetics if they are overweight. I'm not sure if either of these apply to your wife or if perhaps her Doc just views it as being proactive.

cheers

safi

 

[AloeSvea]

As wonderful a drug as metformin is, nothing compares to 'lifestyle changes' to bring blood glucose levels down and your liver and your pancreas functioning normally again. I am shocked that your wife's doctor did not say this to her. 'Lifestyle changes' of course is a funny little phrase for avoiding and eliminating sugar and processed food in your diet, and moving those limbs more and getting out and about on a walk and whatever. Perhaps her doctor decided for her that she could not or would not do either of those things? (Even if that is so, I am still shocked.)

Two books that I read about on this forum are fabulous for prediabetics in particular - 'The Diabetes Miracle: 3 simple steps to prevent and control diabetes and regain your health...permanently' by Diane Kress, and the wonderful 'Dr Bernstein's Diabetes Solution:The Complete Guide to Achieving Normal Blood Sugars' by Richard K Bernstein. Another really good easy to read one (the layout is fabulous) is Dr Hyman's 'The Blood Sugar Solution: The best-selling program for preventing disease, losing weight, and feeling great'.

When I first got diagnosed with T2D I envied prediabetics! The road is so short from a , for example, 42 or 44 HBA1cs to 40 and below! Now I have a greater understanding, as a prediabetic now myself, that it's all relative - and that road can still seem mighty long and hard to go down even so. I'm at 44 and 40 and below seems a long long long way off. I wish your wife the best! And hope she gets some good stuff out of those very good books on the subject, that will work for her.