T2 fasting and metformin SR

[LPH39]

Both myself and my husband are type 2 and very overweight. the last two weeks we have been fasting 16:8 and 18-19:6 and slowly moving towards low carb. I have lost weight and he hasn’t lost as much, the difference being he still takes 2000mg daily and I just stopped.

I suggested the failure to lose weight might the the extra insulin created by the metformin. my husband said Metformin does not create extra insulin just makes us more efficient in using what we do make.

Well that wasnt what i was told by GP and the internet seems divided too. my questions are:

a) Does metformin create extra insulin
b) is it a help or hinderance to fasting and weight loss given liver dumps etc

 

[lovinglife]

I’m afraid your hubby is right on question a) Metformin doesn’t create extra insulin, it helps to stop the liver dumping glucose and helps with dawn phenomenon

In my experience and from what I’ve seen from others sharing their experiences (those who can tolerate Metformin) it helps with the liver dumps and also can work as an appetite suppressant, thus it may aid weight loss I lost 11st whilst all the time on Metformin

 

[Antje77]

a) Does metformin create extra insulin
b) is it a help or hinderance to fasting and weight loss given liver dumps etc

a) Your husband is correct, metformin does not create extra insulin.
b) If anything, it could be a help because it should reduce glucose dumped by the liver, and thus insulin produced in reaction to this glucose.

I have lost weight and he hasn’t lost as much, the difference being he still takes 2000mg daily and I just stopped.

Not everyone loses weight at the same rate on the same treatment!
Give it some time.

Are the both of you testing your blood glucose to see how the diabetes is doing?

 

[ianf0ster]

@LPH39 No two people lose weight at exactly the same rate even when eating the same diet because we all unique in our genes, gut biome an hormone status. So it would actually be surprising if you has both lost the same.
As said above, Metformin mostly help with weight loss (in those who can tolerate it), it certainly doesn't make people gain weight.

Are you limiting calories as well as carbohydrates? I ask because this can be counter productive and this is the reason why most conventional weight loss diets fail so much. This is not a problem with completely fasting, though you appear to be doing Time Restricted Eating rather than actual fasting with no food (just water/black tea) in a whole 24hrs or more.
The problem with calorie restriction over a long period is that the body can feel that times are tough, goes into 'starvation mode' and conserves calories (by allowing less for all activities - even for resting activities and thinking.
This reduction in Resting Metabolic Rate means that on a calorie restricted diet the body can consume less calories, meaning that the same calories eaten leaves a surplus which gets deposited as body fat - completely undermining the intent!

 

[AloeSvea]

Hi @LPH39. I started a longterm IF regime and metformin at the same time, over a year ago.

Yeah, as lovinglife says - metformin lowers how much glucose your own body makes, so therefore lowers how much insulin your body produces to deal with that.

It also has a dramatic effect on our digestion and guts, some for the good, and some not. Also our hormones that regulate our appetite. Which is where a postive effect on weight loss comes in - that can mean nausea, gut pain, lowered appetite hormonally - that leads to weight loss.

But - and this is the lovely metformin doozy, the doozy for us all with metabolic disease and its treatment - it affects different people in different ways to different degrees. That is a common refrain through all of our postings really - we can react differently to different treatments. I would say that you and your husband are in an interesting position where you can compare and contrast how the same treatment works out for you, both in practice, and in your increasing health?

When it comes to weight loss, I always bring it back to food. That's how the most signficant weight loss happens from my own experience and understanding, and reading other folks who lost a lot of weight post diagnosis and kept it off. For T2 it's about lowering your carbs (and - aka - high glucose making fattening foods). It always comes down to that, imho.

IF for me is more about weight loss maintenance, but when a galpal and her partner tried IF for weight loss I couldn't help but quote Dr Fung on that, and that's that yeah - any regime where you are eating less food (the better quality less fattening food is crucial to that), is going to help with weight loss. Also, IF works in with our body clocks, and really helps lower too high insulin by giving our bodies a break, or more of a break, from the glucose/insulin cycle that keeps our pancreases cranking it out.

Re weight loss - By taking metformin and having an IF regime that worked for me, it did bring my BMI down a couple of numbers. Which translated to a smaller waist, less weight on my face and arms and legs. I have a regular lifting heavy things going on, so it has not meant muscle loss. I also eat lots of protein, so that contributes to not having muscle loss, which can be a factor in older people and fasting regimes. Heavy liftng and protein should make that not an issue.