Type 2 Stomach cramps

She has probably been prescribed the regular metformin, it has a reputation of causing stomach problems. I had to change pharmacy as every time I got my prescription from the previous pharmacy, the brand had changed. How many tablets is she taking? The dose has to be increased slowly over a number of weeks to prevent stomach problems.

There is a solution - metformin SR, the slow release version, it is much kinder on the stomach but it is not prescribed in the first instance as it is more expensive and they hope that you will tolerate the regular stuff.

Tallmarky76 said:

Hi all,

My wife has type 2 diabeties and is taking metaformin to keep it under control. Recently the make of her metaformin tablets were changed but she has been having very bad stomach/gut cramps making her not wanting to eat as it hurts too bad but obviously she has to eat.

Besides changing the make of the metaformin tablets at the pharmacist can anyone else please advise us what we can do or what we could eat to help her cramps?

Any advice or help would be much appreciated

Mark

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Hi ,I am on metformin 500mg 3 times a day.I always take it with my meal not before or after.I have never had any stomach problems or problems going to the loo as the doc said I would.Sorry to mention this at this time of day.If your wife is taking them without food it will cause problems.I,ve been type 2 for 4 years now.....I hope this helps and wish her well.

Yes, as Denise says, ask for Metformin SR as it's much kinder.

If the pains don't subside then please have it checked out. I was only on metformin for 6 months but that was long enough to cause bleeding gastritis and low iron as a result of the bleeding. The symptoms for me were: pain under the left ribs, plus some central and right hand pain, all above waist level.

If your wife has been on metformin for a while, it's always a good idea to have iron, folate and B12 levels checked as metformin can block absorption.

I've read that there can be huge differences between the effects of various generic metformin brands, even though they're meant to be exactly the same, so maybe going back to the previous brand that didn't give her any problems is a good idea.

We mustn't forget that as people with diabetes we may also encounter gastroparesis, which is where the stomach and bowel slows down. Can cause much discomfort at best and pain at worst, bloating etc. Much the same as metformin.
Just a thought,



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I had terrible stomach cramps when I started on Metformin too. My drs switched me to the slow release version and its much better now. I still get a bit of tummy ache now and again but nothing as bad as before