Bad side effects of metformin

aquariel

Newbie
Messages
3
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Diabetes for one month but probably all my life, I walk a lot and this has masked the problem. I have been on very low cabs for a month as my experience of metformin wasn't good. After a month I tried it again but had to reduce the dose to one quarter of prescribed and it was still intolerable.Absolute starving feeling to the point of painful stomach that never went away, cystitis which I didn't have without M, feel like I'm about to collapse with no sugar left but the meter tells me 6mmol/l.
 
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spendercat

Well-Known Member
Messages
277
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
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Cruelty. I am kind.
How consistent are the low readings? Maybe the low carb is working well enough you don't actually need the Metformin. A lot of people can't cope with it.
If it makes you feel so bad don't take it, the manufacturer does not claim there are any ill effects from going off it, only from having high blood sugars if you do.
A month isn't very long, stick to a controlled carb diet for a few months and then see if you need a different drug to help.
 

lindisfel

Expert
Messages
5,659
Diabetes for one month but probably all my life, I walk a lot and this has masked the problem. I have been on very low cabs for a month as my experience of metformin wasn't good. After a month I tried it again but had to reduce the dose to one quarter of prescribed and it was still intolerable.Absolute starving feeling to the point of painful stomach that never went away, cystitis which I didn't have without M, feel like I'm about to collapse with no sugar left but the meter tells me 6mmol/l.
You will need to increase good fats in your diet or you will feel hungry if not on Metformin.
regards
D.
 

BarbaraG

Well-Known Member
Messages
273
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Non-insulin injectable medication (incretin mimetics)
Another vote here for it taking time for full effects of low carb to manifest. My fbg came down steadily, almost 0.5mmol/l each week for several weeks. Then switched to a much slower decrease..... then seemed to stall/rise slightly.

Then this morning, after 5 months LCHF I was surprised and delighted with a 4.9 reading. Of course, the slower reduction could be the effect of the accompanying weight loss - 3.5 stone so far.
 
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Kyambala

Well-Known Member
Messages
382
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Diabetes for one month but probably all my life, I walk a lot and this has masked the problem. I have been on very low cabs for a month as my experience of metformin wasn't good. After a month I tried it again but had to reduce the dose to one quarter of prescribed and it was still intolerable.Absolute starving feeling to the point of painful stomach that never went away, cystitis which I didn't have without M, feel like I'm about to collapse with no sugar left but the meter tells me 6mmol/l.

Hello aquariel. You will get good advice on this site. Metformin gave me constant headaches, feeling sick, etc. A year ago my Diabetic Nurse put me on a "new type" of Metformin and I have no side effects from it at all. I was also able to reduce my Insulin by about 30%. Ask your Doctor about it. Keep reading this Forum for advice from those who have "experience" with Diabetics, and not just medical "theory".
Kindest Regards.
 

spendercat

Well-Known Member
Messages
277
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Cruelty. I am kind.
What is the new type of Metformin called! Is it available in the U.K., do you know?
 

Kyambala

Well-Known Member
Messages
382
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
What is the new type of Metformin called! Is it available in the U.K., do you know?
Good morning spendercat. The leaflet says: GLUCOPHAGE SR 500 mg Prolonged release tablets. Metformin hydrochloride. The manufacturer is: Merch Serono. I can ONLY get these in the UK. I have found no side effects with them. They are supposed to be for Diabetic who are NOT Insulin dependent - BUT my Diabetic Nurse prescribed them for me even though I AM Insulin dependent. They have REDUCED my Insulin needs morning and evening by about 30%.
Have a nice day.
 

pleinster

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,631
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
ignorance
Diabetes for one month but probably all my life, I walk a lot and this has masked the problem. I have been on very low cabs for a month as my experience of metformin wasn't good. After a month I tried it again but had to reduce the dose to one quarter of prescribed and it was still intolerable.Absolute starving feeling to the point of painful stomach that never went away, cystitis which I didn't have without M, feel like I'm about to collapse with no sugar left but the meter tells me 6mmol/l.

Hi. If you are not doing so already, I would suggest recording readings before and 2.5 hours after all food (recording also the food and its carb content), as well as recording when you take your meds and what readings you get there too. It was by doing so that I gradually saw patterns emerge, stopped my meds and worked on reducing carbs as much as I could. I advised my doctor and was supported because I could show results and my records. Good luck.
 

Kyambala

Well-Known Member
Messages
382
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi. If you are not doing so already, I would suggest recording readings before and 2.5 hours after all food (recording also the food and its carb content), as well as recording when you take your meds and what readings you get there too. It was by doing so that I gradually saw patterns emerge, stopped my meds and worked on reducing carbs as much as I could. I advised my doctor and was supported because I could show results and my records. Good luck.
Hi pleinster. When it comes to counting carbs I must confess to being totally lazy in this respect. I have NEVER counted carbs - and I wouldn't know where to start. When I return to the UK in January I plan to try and cut out carbs all together and just eat high fat foods. Others on this Forum say it works, so I will give it a try. Will you come to my funeral?
 

spendercat

Well-Known Member
Messages
277
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Cruelty. I am kind.
Drat it, kymbala. They are the ones that my doctor gave me, that made me as sick as a dog. Oh well.
Less than 50g of carb is a bit of a slog some days. I would not do it if I was stable on insulin. On the other hand - I would gain weight..
 

Jay-Marc

Well-Known Member
Messages
218
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Roughly one-eighth of people cannot tolerate Metformin even in a slow / extended release delivery. However, about half of those who can't tolerate the regular tablets can the SR/XR versions. So it is worth a trial.
 

pleinster

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Messages
1,631
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Diet only
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ignorance
Hi pleinster. When it comes to counting carbs I must confess to being totally lazy in this respect. I have NEVER counted carbs - and I wouldn't know where to start. When I return to the UK in January I plan to try and cut out carbs all together and just eat high fat foods. Others on this Forum say it works, so I will give it a try. Will you come to my funeral?

Carb counting is more straightforward than you may think. It's almost impossible to cut all carbs (unless you eat only meat..and some do, very successfully), but all you need to do really is check labels - the carbohydrate content is as important as the sugar content because carbs effectively change to glucose in the blood. Basically, "low carb" is anything around 10g or less per 100g of product. I try sticking to that as much as I can. I was concerned about reducing carbs dramatically before I tried it an got informed. The human body does not need carbohydrates to function, and many now see Type 2 diabetes as a kind of carbohydrate intolerance. Bottom line - there is no such ting as a carbohydrate deficiency. My doctors are entirely comfortable with my low carb diet. As for your funeral...hopefully that's along way off and due to something other than carb cutting or even diabetes. I might come...will there be sticky buns?
 

Kyambala

Well-Known Member
Messages
382
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Carb counting is more straightforward than you may think. It's almost impossible to cut all carbs (unless you eat only meat..and some do, very successfully), but all you need to do really is check labels - the carbohydrate content is as important as the sugar content because carbs effectively change to glucose in the blood. Basically, "low carb" is anything around 10g or less per 100g of product. I try sticking to that as much as I can. I was concerned about reducing carbs dramatically before I tried it an got informed. The human body does not need carbohydrates to function, and many now see Type 2 diabetes as a kind of carbohydrate intolerance. Bottom line - there is no such ting as a carbohydrate deficiency. My doctors are entirely comfortable with my low carb diet. As for your funeral...hopefully that's along way off and due to something other than carb cutting or even diabetes. I might come...will there be sticky buns?

Hello again pleinster. As to my funeral I'm afraid that I shall not be in charge of the menu. As to carb labeling, I have never seen potatoes with a carb label. I eat whatever my wife serves up and she is not Diabetic. I just see the finished cooked product on my plate and they taste delicious. But when I return to the UK in January I intend to try and persuade her to serve me bacon & eggs, ham, lamb shanks, beef, salmon, cheese, butter, full cream milk, and nuts How she is going to get all of that on one plate I don't know.
 

XxTinkerxx

Well-Known Member
Messages
158
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Rude & condescending people. I will call you out on it.
"New" Metformin

Is it this stuff? It made me sick as a dog.
 

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bigjim19

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Messages
1,960
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
a lot of food im supposed to eat yuk
Just the same I've got it just goes by a different supplier name
 
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XxTinkerxx

Well-Known Member
Messages
158
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
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Rude & condescending people. I will call you out on it.
Just the same I've got it just goes by a different supplier name
This is what I take now. Doesn't make me feel half as rotten as the other brands I have taken. Not sure why?!
 

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bigjim19

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1,960
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Diet only
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a lot of food im supposed to eat yuk
Could be slightly different ingredients in each supplier but still metformin
 

pleinster

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1,631
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ignorance
Hello again pleinster. As to my funeral I'm afraid that I shall not be in charge of the menu. As to carb labeling, I have never seen potatoes with a carb label. I eat whatever my wife serves up and she is not Diabetic. I just see the finished cooked product on my plate and they taste delicious. But when I return to the UK in January I intend to try and persuade her to serve me bacon & eggs, ham, lamb shanks, beef, salmon, cheese, butter, full cream milk, and nuts How she is going to get all of that on one plate I don't know.

I struggle to heat tinned soup. My wife does all the cooking and she isn't diabetic either, but we have a cunning plan to avoid my toes falling off...she looks at carbs on the labels and now eats a similar diet to me (which she now prefers). Potatoes or chips in packets (ie. ****** frozen ones) do have labels. Any food you are unsure of - Google it; the first item on the list has a list of nutrients to the right hand side...it's that easy. there are apps for mobile phones too. I don't need to look anymore unless it's anew food. Just a little work soon establishes what's good for you and what isn't. You don't need to put all of that food you mention on one plate...just spread it over the table and wire in. As for your funeral, if you cannot guarantee me a sticky bun treat on day like that..I am not going! :)