Impact of reducing Metformin

[ExiledJack]

Hi All,

Type 2 here on 4x 500mg metformin a day. Diagnosed in March with a1c of 107, a1c result last week was 39 so obviously really pleased with that.

Had an appointment with my consultant and he said we should try reducing metformin in half to 1x 500g twice a day.

Typical readings are 5.5-6 in the AM, 4.5-5.5 in the PM.

I’m paranoid that my blood sugars will go crazy by reducing the dosage so I have two questions.

1. Has anyone else done this and how did you find it impacted your blood sugar readings?

2. Is there any benefit to reducing my daily dose if I tolerate metformin well?

Today my blood glucose has stubbornly stuck at 6 which is fine but I’m happier when in the 5s.
I see there are a plethora of protective effects of metformin too. For context in 31 and 15 stone at 6 foot so not hugely overweight anymore but have family history of type 2. Was 18 stone at dx.

Thanks for any responses, this forum is amazing. Cheers.

 

[Resurgam]

I found that the tablets made me really unwell so I threw them away.
I got better.
As a type two your blood glucose is a reflection of the carbs you eat - the metformin isn't doing anything to drag it out of your blood and get rid of it. If you want lower readings after meals, just remove a few carbs - maybe try 5 gm less for a week, removing them at the time of day when you see the highest readings. If nothing happens then your diet is right for you. Trust your meter to show you the trends in your diabetes management.

 

[catinahat]

Metformin works by reducing the amount of glucose your liver releases in to your bloodstream and it also helps a little with insulin resistance. It will not reduce any glucose that comes from the food you eat. The amazing reduction in your HbA1c is for the most part down to your own hard work.
We can't advise you whether or not to take your medication, that's between you and your Dr. But I can tell you my own experience which is that I noticed a very slight increase in my fasting reading's

 

[Brunneria]

Hi Jack,

You haven't said what you are eating. For T2s, food choices have a bigger impact on blood glucose than Metformin, so you may find that a few food tweaks will have far more effect than dropping half your dose of Metformin - although of course that does depend on how low carb you are already, and how much lower you are willing to take the carb intake.

 

[ExiledJack]

Hi Jack,

You haven't said what you are eating. For T2s, food choices have a bigger impact on blood glucose than Metformin, so you may find that a few food tweaks will have far more effect than dropping half your dose of Metformin - although of course that does depend on how low carb you are already, and how much lower you are willing to take the carb intake.

I have 80g - 120g of carbs per day. Trying to keep it towards the 80g end of the scale and see how I get on.

 

[Robbity]

I was on slow release metformin for about three years, keeping my glucose levels stable with a low carb diet, before my GP finally decided I was able to manage without it, so I simply stopped taking it, and I saw no change for the worse in my glucose levels afterwards.

There are apparently other benefits to metformin, so you mat want to consider whether these are important to you or not.

 

[Oldvatr]

My experience on this is that I have halved my Metformin dose, and saw approx 1 mmol/l rise in general levels, which I have trimmed back by keeping to LC diet. I decided to keep some intake rather than give it up completely since it offers cardiovascular benefits as well and that is something I appreciate.