Thank you... I have been diagnosed as being Prediabetic... and so learning all I can about the disease is important to me.. plus Larry is a flull blown diabetic... (that is addicted to Little Debbie's ) Grrr....

Carolyn

My Mother has diabetes.Not real bad so the Dr had her on Metformin. She just had her knee replaced and was so sick for almost 3 months after surgery. I actually thought she wouldn't recover.So nauseated and lost 30 lbs rapidly. Drs couldn't figure out what was wrong,kept putting her in the hospital and giving her fluids. My sister knows 4 people that got really sick on this med so she tried taking her off of it. Miracle! She is no longer nauseated,eating well and just feels so much better. Some people just can;t take that med. And her sugar is staying fine with wtching her diet. Moral of my story is....if you have diabetes and are on Metformin,if you get nauseated or have severe diareaha.Look into the med. Dr didn't think it was that and was a little upset with my sister but she told him that my mom was dying on that med.She lost 30 lbs down to 118 and skin and bones.

If you are pre-diabetic or even diabetic
please get the book below and read it.

Pooh Bear

Here is a link that might be useful: 50 diabetes myths and the truths you need to know

Gazania, you are right that much more information is available now, and you have to use it to your advantage. It is not a disease to thumb your nose at, as apparently CS is imlying her friend is doing.
CR, I am glad your Mom is better. Her doctor was wrong to not investigate more thoroughly. Metformin is a great medication if you can take it, but stomach irritation is know to be one of the major side effects. It is a disease that requires being active in your own care The side affects can often be held off for many years, with proper managment.
I think the world of my family medicine doctor, but I strongly urge anyone to work with certified diabetes educators. Their expertise is limited to diabetes, and they know the latest information. You do have to carefully look at information on the web, because there are many studies that are out of date.

I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic in my early twenties, and have managed to duck the disease by being careful about my diet. I have several friends whose only concession to diabetes is to take a pill (or insulin). The eat all sorts of crap, never check their blood sugar, etc. And now that they're getting older, the diabetes complications are starting to set in: kidney problems, vision loss, etc. Still, the non-compliance continues. It's frustrating to watch.

I have been on Metformin for several years there are several things that you can do to prevent the side effects. Only take it with a meal and always supplement your B vitamins especially the B-12. This will prevent most of the stomach issues. Metformin strips the body of B-12. I don't know why some doctors do not inform the patients of this and put them on a supplement from day one. Any time I hear someone say they are on Metformin and suffering the stomach issues I suggest going immediately and getting B-12 supplements preferably the liquid B-12. I take it daily, I find it at CVS and Walgreens. My doctor checks my vitamin levels every 3 months when he does my blood work. It should really be required wish it was so many would then know what is happening. My doc will also on occasion give me the B-12 shots.
The liquid B-12 I take is not the under the tongue type it is in a bottle that has a little cup on top (like pepto bismol has) you take one little cup full daily. It tastes good actually.
CVS Liquid B-12 1000 mcg CVS Liquid B-12 1000 mcg
the one at walgreens looks pretty much the same but has the walgreens name.

I think one of the most important things for anyone that is newly diagnosed with any type of diabetes is to go to a diabetes education facility and go through the classes. The doctor can write a prescription for the education and insurance will pay for it. The knowledge you get is so valuable and you get to keep all the notebooks and literature for reference. Most will also call and follow up with you for some time after the education to make sure you are doing ok and answer any questions plus you can also call them should you need to.
Extremely valuable!

OMGosh I am sooo glad I opened this thread! I don't have diabetes but I have been prescribed Metformin for PCOS & ovary problems. I started taking it summer of 2011 and had a partial hysterectomy Oct 2011 when I had to stop taking it because it lowers blood suger sooo far. I had no problems with it other than I already am on the low side of normal on my blood sugar # A1C something so I had to make sure to eat enough and after surgery I was not able to eat much. I was supossed to get 1 ovary removed but instead the dr cleaned it up and since then it has been 10x worse and I know i need to get back on the Metformin but everytime I do, I get horrible stomach problems. I will try your suggestions RavenCajun and see it that helps! I workout quite a bit and this med actually gave me more energy and enabled me to lift significantly more weight in my heavy weight lifting. My trainer can actually tell when I am back to trying the Metformin from my workout. Thanks! ~ liz

My husband when first diagnosed was put on Metformin. He had no problems with it for about a year. Then he started losing weight. He was eating well, blood sugars were always good, even his A1c was very good. His whole life, dh was never over weight, very active and our diet geared to the diabetic way of eating because of our diabetic daughter. So his doctor decided to treat him as type 1, with insulin. Husband gained the 40 lbs he had lost and all is well now. He does 4 injections a day, and tests his blood 4 or 5 times daily.

I heartily agree, that the newly diagnosed should go through some classes with a diabetes educator and there are many good books that will be very helpful. But I know that some for whatever reason just don't get around to taking advantage of these things. My own sister and a sister-in-law are two examples. By recommending the magazine article, I thought some would find it convenient to pick up the magazine on their next trip to Walmart. In my opinion, it is well written and easy to understand.

If you Google metformin and b-12 you can read more about this. Here's one of many that have been on the diabetes self management website and magazine which I subscribe to.

Here is a link that might be useful: Metformin and b 12

There have been a lot of recent studies into curing type 2 Diabetes with a 'very low calorie diet' or 'gastric surgery" for overweight Diabetics.

Lots more links if you Google "low calorie diet and diabetes". Interesting stuff!

Here is a link that might be useful: Hypocaloric Diet for Diabetes

I have been "pre-diabetic/hypogycemic" (threw a 27 on a 6 hr. GTT) for 35 yrs. Brother is a type 1, sister and dad were type 2, half-sister and I were both gestational diabetics. I've controlled it with diet. Low carb/high protein, eating every 3-4 hrs. Life is goood. (as long as I get enough protein to offset the carbs, cuz if my blood sugar bottoms out, I feel horrible and act that way.)