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Avandia

B

bumblejoy

Member
Hi everyone,
I have been trying really hard to eat well, excercise, lose weight etc but my HB level is rising rather than going down. I am still overweight and am still working on losing weight.
The doctor now wants me to start taking Avandia as well as the metformin i take (2x1tablet daily).
I hate having to take so many flaming pills and just wondered if anyone has taken Avandia and if it is successful. Also I am fearful of the side effects it can cause.
Any feedback would be gratefully received.
Thanks
Joy
 
Hi Joy.

Avandia. Rosiglitazone.

I was on this for a year or two. Apart from the fact that I seemed to gain weight hand over fist (though this could also be something to do with the so called 'healthy' diet I followed) I had no side effects whatsoever. Each of us is different and side effects are not complulsory !!

I hate taking pills too - you are only taking a few from your profile list. I ended up taking 23 a day before gaining control of the Diabetes and now have stopped many pills and am down to just 10 a day. Much to my relief. They are all being stopped gradually.

Ken.
 
Hi Ken
Thanks for your reply. It has reassured me. I did ask if in time i could come off some pills and the answer was yes. I must say though i dread the weight gain as i have worked so hard on losing it!
Regards
Joy
 
Hi Joy.

Yes, I too was fed up with the weight gain. It only receded when I was put on Byetta and had the Avandia stopped, along with a drastic reduction in my carbohydrate intake. I wished I knew then what I know now. I would never have got to the weight I did...19.5 stone !
I'm now 15st 13lbs and dropping.

Ken.
 
Hi
Well done you, thats a great weight loss.
I started off at 17st 7lbs and am now 16st and dropping!
It is very hard though and you think that the Dr knows best however i do question their ethics sometimes. I think we just need reassurance sometimes and not feel as though we are failures!
My Dr never seems to explain things well or why she wants to start me on other medicines.
She rolled off a list of different drugs yesterday and then said what do you think and what did i want to go on! I said non of them as a joke but had to say that i am not medically trained and i have to put my faith in her so what did she think was the best option! Avandia was the 1st choice.
I wish i had not read the leaflet with the pills as it really makes you question taking the **** things! I then had a discussion with myself and decided to take them as side effects might not happen and god forbid i get pregnant! Birth control at my age! another little Joy!
Thanks again Ken
Joy :D
 
Hi Joy,

I gather that Avandia does work for some people but I suffered the same as Ken when I was put on it. It carries one of the longest list of side effects known to man and I suffered from most of them, including putting on 5 stone in 6 months despite constant dieting. I don't know whether they have changed the leaflet recently but when I was taking it, the literature mentioned very few side effects and claimed they were quite rare. My GP didn't think the Avandia could be causing the problems I was encountering because he had read the leaflet! It was only when he referred me to a consultant that I was immediately taken off them and put on to Byetta instead. Since then my story has been much the same as Ken's - BG mostly in the non-diabetic range and weight dropped from 18st 6 at it's highest (on Avandia) to 12st 5 now.

If Byetta is one of the treatments your GP suggested then I would certainly consider it.
 
Hi Dennis,
Thanks for your input, i can't remember her mentioning that one but i certainly will give her a call and ask her.
The leaflet is much more in depth about side effects and it scared me to be honest. It was the heart failure one that did it and the increase in weight. Fancy giving people who are trying to lose weight something that can potentially increase your weight. I personally don't want to go there!
Regards
Joy
 
bumblejoy
Weight gain is a side effect of many antidiabetic medications, inccluding all the sulphonylureas, the glitazones( of which Avandia is one) and insulin.
The exceptions are Metformin, Byetta and the new one Victoza.
Metformin is cheap ( about 10p a tablet), but Byetta and Victoza are very expensive, which is a pity, because they help a lot in weight control
 
Thanks Hanadr, i will bear that in mind. I think i am lucky with my Dr in some respects as she does not seem to hesitate in putting you on a more expensive drug if needs be though obviously they wil try the cheaper options first.
Joy
 
My Consultant is not a great fan of Avandia and nor am I, first thing he did was take me off it.

I believe it is under review in the States.
 
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