Re: Side effects from Glucophage

January 9, 2001

In a message dated 1/9/01 4:41:29 PM Eastern Standard Time,

anne@... writes:

<< I started taking Glucophage about 2 weeks ago, and I've been having some

problems with stomachache and diarrhea since then, sort of alternating

constipation and diarrhea every few days. My doctor told me that I might

have side effects like this for a while, but they will decrease over time.

Have any of you experienced this? How long is it likely to last? I've also

lost 3 lbs during the 2 weeks, which I'm thrilled about because I have a

hard time losing weight.

Are there any particular foods I should avoid while taking Glucophage?

Other than the obvious sugars and dense carbs, of course.

>>

I think i was very lucky, i started out on 500 mg of Glucophage a day, and

was told when i got thru some side effects to increase to 2 tabs a day...

well i had a bit of loose stools, and 0 nausea, or stomach pain or bloating,

or constipation.

So after 5 days i went up to 2 tabs, a day, and i have not had much of a

problem on that either.

I am however making sure that i take it WITH food, and that i'm eating a

balance of veggies, and other foods daily.

I'm gathering from my blood sugars, and carb intake of about 50 -75mg of carb

a day (not a tton) that i'm going to need to go to 3 tabs a day 1500 mg, or

mabye even 4 tabs a day, 2000 mg per day,

because i'm hanging in the 135 - 150 range when i'm not eating bad stuff....

(chocolate is my downfall)

I'm doing moderate amt of exercise each day, and am not sure that i can get

it much lower without either majorily increaseing exercise, or drastically

cutting back on carbs, or increasing meds...

*** I was told that if i got thru the sideeffects of the glucophage, which

might last up to 2-3 weeks (per dose level) that i'd not feel bad at all, I'm

just thankful i have not had a lot of side effects.

January 9, 2001

> Are there any particular foods I should avoid

> while taking Glucophage? Other than the obvious

> sugars and dense carbs, of course.

My wife and I have been taking Glucophage for about a year now, Anne,

and never found any special effect due to a particular food. Maybe we

just don't eat the same things as you though!

Food choice is not mentioned in the package insert nor was it a

factor in the metformin safety report. You might want to avoid

certain foods for other reasons but I doubt that there is any direct

connection with Glucophage, not even for the " obvious sugars and

dense carbs " .

The best you can do, I would think, is to keep a log book and record

exactly what and when you eat and exactly when you have bowel

problems. After a few weeks, you should be able to see what coincides

with what.

I have heard of an early Glucophage reaction affecting the stomach in

a very few people but never heard of any problem with the bowels. My

wife has a very sensitive stomach but never had any problem with

Glucophage at all, right from the start.

It would be a pity for you to get fixed on Glucophage as the cause

because it might just be a coincidence. Some people's bowels are very

sensitive to emotional influences (mine, for example). You might want

to consider that aspect, too. Once I had such bad bowel problems, it

kept me away from work for a while but I had to go through a thorough

examination in a clinic before I could accept the notion that the

cause was emotional. Once I did accept it, and faced up to the

emotional problem, the bowel upset went away on its own.

January 9, 2001

-

Thanks for pointing out the possible emotional aspect to the problems. In

the same time frame as starting the Glucophage, my doctors changed the type

of hormones I'm on. I also have bipolar disorder, though at the moment I'm

very stable, which I think is partly due to gaining control of my blood

sugar. However, I'm under a lot of pressure at work due to a big deadline

next week, and my 96 year old grandma was placed in a nursing home last week

and I haven't been able to go visit her since last month because she's 200

miles away. I do tend to get physical symptoms when I'm emotionally strung

out... usually getting sick is what it takes for me to feel like I have an

excuse to slow down and rest for a day. Today my stomach was bad enough

that I stayed home in bed all day, even knowing that I'll probably have to

work Saturday to catch up at work.

It could be that the Glucophage is not the cause of my problems.

Anne

> Re: Side effects from Glucophage

>

> > Are there any particular foods I should avoid

> > while taking Glucophage? Other than the obvious

> > sugars and dense carbs, of course.

>

> My wife and I have been taking Glucophage for about a year now, Anne,

> and never found any special effect due to a particular food. Maybe we

> just don't eat the same things as you though!

>

> Food choice is not mentioned in the package insert nor was it a

> factor in the metformin safety report. You might want to avoid

> certain foods for other reasons but I doubt that there is any direct

> connection with Glucophage, not even for the " obvious sugars and

> dense carbs " .

>

> The best you can do, I would think, is to keep a log book and record

> exactly what and when you eat and exactly when you have bowel

> problems. After a few weeks, you should be able to see what coincides

> with what.

>

> I have heard of an early Glucophage reaction affecting the stomach in

> a very few people but never heard of any problem with the bowels. My

> wife has a very sensitive stomach but never had any problem with

> Glucophage at all, right from the start.

>

> It would be a pity for you to get fixed on Glucophage as the cause

> because it might just be a coincidence. Some people's bowels are very

> sensitive to emotional influences (mine, for example). You might want

> to consider that aspect, too. Once I had such bad bowel problems, it

> kept me away from work for a while but I had to go through a thorough

> examination in a clinic before I could accept the notion that the

> cause was emotional. Once I did accept it, and faced up to the

> emotional problem, the bowel upset went away on its own.

>

> Public website for Diabetes International:

> http://www.msteri.com/diabetes-info/diabetes_int

>

> Post message: diabetes_integroups

> Subscribe: diabetes_int-subscribeegroups

> Unsubscribe: diabetes_int-unsubscribeegroups

> List owner: diabetes_int-owneregroups

>

> URL: /group/diabetes_int

>

January 9, 2001

Anne: I was on Glucophage for a while last year, then stopped taking it, and

recently started it again. Both times, I experienced some diarrhea for about 10

days and also lost a few pounds. I did not notice any correlation between the

bowel problems and the food I was eating (I seemed to have loose stools no

matter what kind or how much food I ate). The symptoms cleared up within 10

days. I have been taking it for a month now and the symptoms have gone away.

Hope this helps.

Anne wrote:

> I started taking Glucophage about 2 weeks ago, and I've been having some

> problems with stomachache and diarrhea since then, sort of alternating

> constipation and diarrhea every few days. My doctor told me that I might

> have side effects like this for a while, but they will decrease over time.

>

> Have any of you experienced this? How long is it likely to last? I've also

> lost 3 lbs during the 2 weeks, which I'm thrilled about because I have a

> hard time losing weight.

>

> Are there any particular foods I should avoid while taking Glucophage?

> Other than the obvious sugars and dense carbs, of course.

>

> Many thanks in advance for any advice you can give me.

>

> Anne

>

> Public website for Diabetes International:

> http://www.msteri.com/diabetes-info/diabetes_int

>

> Post message: diabetes_integroups

> Subscribe: diabetes_int-subscribeegroups

> Unsubscribe: diabetes_int-unsubscribeegroups

> List owner: diabetes_int-owneregroups

>

> URL: /group/diabetes_int

January 9, 2001

Dear Anne,

You can read about Glucophage at http://www.rxlist.com Recommended

technique is to start with one 500 mg pill per day for a few weeks until you

can tolerate that, then move up to two pills a day, and then three. Nearly

all of us experienced the miseries when beginning Glucophage, but only a

minority of users are unable to adapt if they follow the above technique.

Susie

January 9, 2001

Marr wrote:

<< Anne: I was on Glucophage for a while last year, then stopped taking it,

and recently started it again. Both times, I experienced some diarrhea for

about 10 days and also lost a few pounds. >>

Yes. I find that if I discontinue it, I must do the break-in period all over

again.

Susie

January 9, 2001

I remember when I started on glucophage. . .

If I had the feeling of maybe perhaps I might need to

go in a little while. . . . I learned I better head to

the restroom then. . . .

It took about a month for those side effects to

subside.

Ande if I got lazy and didn't take all my meds, and

when I went back to my usual dose. Those side effects

would occur again.

They will go away, at least they did in my case. I

just drank extra water to make sure I didn't dehydrate

too much.

lily

--- Anne wrote:

> I started taking Glucophage about 2 weeks ago, and

> I've been having some

> problems with stomachache and diarrhea since then,

> sort of alternating

> constipation and diarrhea every few days. My doctor

> told me that I might

> have side effects like this for a while, but they

> will decrease over time.

>

> Have any of you experienced this? How long is it

> likely to last? I've also

> lost 3 lbs during the 2 weeks, which I'm thrilled

> about because I have a

> hard time losing weight.

>

> Are there any particular foods I should avoid while

> taking Glucophage?

> Other than the obvious sugars and dense carbs, of

> course.

>

> Many thanks in advance for any advice you can give

> me.

>

> Anne

>

> Public website for Diabetes International:

> http://www.msteri.com/diabetes-info/diabetes_int

>

> Post message: diabetes_integroups

> Subscribe: diabetes_int-subscribeegroups

> Unsubscribe: diabetes_int-unsubscribeegroups

> List owner: diabetes_int-owneregroups

>

> URL: /group/diabetes_int

>

> .

> L: /group/diabetes_int

>

> .

>

__________________________________________________

January 10, 2001

In a message dated 1/10/01 8:38:27 AM Eastern Standard Time,

lists@... writes:

<< > (chocolate is my downfall)

That's an easy one, just don't eat it any more. It is much the same

as giving up smoking and alcohol - you just stop (yeah, I know - I am

only trying to be brave)! I was once on 2 chocolate bars (nuts,

raisins and peppermint nougat filling, the works) a day, I would buy

them by the pack of six. One day, it just came over me - today was

the day to stop cold turkey and I put the pack back on the shelf

again. Since then, I haven't touched it. I can't even go near the

confectionary shelves in a supermarket, the stink of the stuff just

nauseates me. >>

I'm real familiar with not eating it anymore.... i'm just having a lot of

willingness problems....

and the chocolate, and other junk, is here for others, ie visitors etc.... of

course if i eat it up, then it wont be.

January 10, 2001

> I'm gathering from my blood sugars, and carb

> intake of about 50 - 75mg of carb a day ...

> that i'm going to need to go to 3 tabs a day

> 1500 mg, or mabye even 4 tabs a day, 2000 mg

> per day, because i'm hanging in the 135 - 150

> range ...

Don't be impatient, . You might not have to increase the dose

if you are patient for a few months. I started out with HbA1c of 12

and it was reduced to 7 then 6 after a few months, first by taking

500 mg/day for three months (weekly mean FBG 140 mg/dl) and then

increasing to 2 x 500 mg/day. I still take only 2 x 500 mg/day and am

in the low 5's (weekly mean FBG 95 mg/dl). My physician thinks that I

could stay on this dose to the day I die. The less of the stuff you

can get by on, the better, is his approach.

The original metformin treatment target was to reduce the HbA1c

linearly to below 7 within two years of starting treatment with it.

> (chocolate is my downfall)