Time to recover from acarbose side effects

[SarahTee]

I started on acarbose 10 days ago. After the first day, I got bad side effects and discontinued it with the expectation of trying again at a lower dose.

I am still feeling unwell though. Has anyone else had side effects and taken this long to recover?

Doctor is no help.

Side effects are bad taste in mouth, nausea, diarrhoea, acid feeling in stomach (not reflux), headache. This has made it hard to sleep so I’m also exhausted and headachey. This has lessened over the 10 days but I am still not back to “normal”.

(I don’t have diabetes, but there is nowhere for me to ask about acarbose so I hope it’s okay for me to ask here.)

 

[Lamont D]

Hi, from what I have understood about acerbose, it is to help with digesting carbohydrates.
However, as you say, the problems with acerbose, is an old treatment, so you can eat carbs. When people are carb intolerant. It doesn't work for most. The side effects are known.
Acerbose should now not be prescribed, there are better meds out there.
Do insist on finding another approach, with your doctor, tell him you have stopped taking it and can he either suggest an alternative or find a specialist who can. Why, when you are carb intolerant be advised that this drug will let you. No it doesn't!
The treatment is worse than the condition.

 

[Oldvatr]

I started on acarbose 10 days ago. After the first day, I got bad side effects and discontinued it with the expectation of trying again at a lower dose.

I am still feeling unwell though. Has anyone else had side effects and taken this long to recover?

Doctor is no help.

Side effects are bad taste in mouth, nausea, diarrhoea, acid feeling in stomach (not reflux), headache. This has made it hard to sleep so I’m also exhausted and headachey. This has lessened over the 10 days but I am still not back to “normal”.

(I don’t have diabetes, but there is nowhere for me to ask about acarbose so I hope it’s okay for me to ask here.)

Headaches are not a listed side effect for acarbose. Stomach and gut issues may be..

Acarbose: Side Effects, Dosage, Uses, and More

Acarbose oral tablet is a prescription drug used to treat type 2 diabetes. It helps lower blood sugar levels together with diet and exercise. It's available as a generic drug and as the brand-name drug Precose. It may be used as part of a combination therapy. Learn about side effects, warnings...

www.healthline.com

Acarbose only lasts 4 hours in the body. (Half life is 2 hrs). suggests your symptoms may be due to some other problem.

 

[SarahTee]

Headaches are not a listed side effect for acarbose. Stomach and gut issues may be..

Acarbose: Side Effects, Dosage, Uses, and More

Acarbose oral tablet is a prescription drug used to treat type 2 diabetes. It helps lower blood sugar levels together with diet and exercise. It's available as a generic drug and as the brand-name drug Precose. It may be used as part of a combination therapy. Learn about side effects, warnings...

www.healthline.com

Acarbose only lasts 4 hours in the body. (Half life is 2 hrs). suggests your symptoms may be due to some other problem.

This reference says half life of 96 hours:

Acarbose: Package Insert / Prescribing Information

Acarbose package insert / prescribing information for healthcare professionals. Includes: indications, dosage, adverse reactions and pharmacology.

www.drugs.com

Not that that explains why I am still feeling unwell nearly 10 days later.

The headache is probably from disrupted sleep.

 

[SarahTee]

Hi, from what I have understood about acerbose, it is to help with digesting carbohydrates.
However, as you say, the problems with acerbose, is an old treatment, so you can eat carbs. When people are carb intolerant. It doesn't work for most. The side effects are known.
Acerbose should now not be prescribed, there are better meds out there.
Do insist on finding another approach, with your doctor, tell him you have stopped taking it and can he either suggest an alternative or find a specialist who can. Why, when you are carb intolerant be advised that this drug will let you. No it doesn't!
The treatment is worse than the condition.

I know about the issues with this drug, but there is nothing left for me to try apart from one other drug that I can’t afford long term.

There is no alternative at this point. I have discussed it extensively with my specialist.

I am approaching total disability, selling my house, and relying on social services if I can’t find something that helps me.

There are people who take acarbose with no issues. I was hoping I would tolerate it but sadly that isn’t the case.

The reasons for taking it are not related to diabetes or RH.

I was hoping to hear from people who took it, had side effects, and recovered, to give me a bit of hope as to when I might feel better.

 

[SarahTee]

I would like to hear from anyone who took acarbose and had a bad reaction to it as to what the recovery time was.

My doctors agree that the reaction is due to acarbose. What they can’t help with is if or when I might feel better.

 

[Oldvatr]

This reference says half life of 96 hours:

Acarbose: Package Insert / Prescribing Information

Acarbose package insert / prescribing information for healthcare professionals. Includes: indications, dosage, adverse reactions and pharmacology.

www.drugs.com

Not that that explains why I am still feeling unwell nearly 10 days later.

The headache is probably from disrupted sleep.

The 96 hours applies to unused drug in feces, not the blood plasma levels. The info is apparently from the package insert supplied by the manufacturer. The main elimination path for the active ingredient is via the kidneys.

 

[Oldvatr]

Although Acarbose is a T2D drug, it is not commonly prescribed in the UK. Your post is the first I have seen in this forum, and I have been aware of acarbose for some time now. It may be more common in USA and is certainly common in Asiatic countries. But its effect on blood sugars is quite small.

The drug is used to slow down the metabolism, so nausea and other gastric events will be prevalent. we see the same side effect in other weight loss drugs like Ozempic. You say you are taking this for an off label (non diabetic) reason. The main off label use I see is weight loss and it is available without prescription in the UK for that purpose.