@A DiabetesTeam Member any of the new drugs in the GLP-1 class (Ozempic, Rybelsus, Victoza etc) would likely be easier on your system (after initially starting them - all drugs tend to cause an initial reaction)

The other main difference between these and the metformin is method and cost - all save one of these are "injectables" which turns many people off and none of them are generics making them incredibly expensive

There would be one more alternative (in a generic) - a long acting (extended release) drug from the Sulfonylurea class (all of their names end in "ide" like Glimepiride, Glyburide etc) are super effective but can be cumbersome to take - they routinely cause low blood sugar which must be guarded against, they work best if you eat at the same time each day (and don't vary it by more than an hour - so it's like "stop everything and eat or get a low") and they often require strict carb counting - so not very "user friendly" but have been around for over 80 years so every side effect possible has been seen

But if you really can't take the Metformin (my father couldn't either and switched to the Glyburide) - 5 to 10% of people just can't take the stuff, then you really need to talk to your Doctor and "insist" that they put you on something else because simply not taking meds is not an option if you don't want to really mess yourself up

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@A DiabetesTeam Member unfortunately there is somewhere between 5 and 10% of patients that just never tolerate metformin (made my father violently ill and he really tried to give it a good shot).

Metformin is the only effective (oral medication) against Hepatic sugars (metabolic sugars stored in the liver) so if you can't take it and need help in that regard then the SGLT-2i drugs, which include Jardiance can certainly help because they suck sugar out of the blood and don't care "what the source is - food or the liver) but that class also has a bunch of nasty side effects as well (in about 20% of the users).

If you are doing well on it that's great because if it becomes "no longer enough" then a Basal Insulin would be the only other option (for those hepatic sugars).

@A DiabetesTeam Member lyrica (pregabalin) is for nerve pain (diabetic or non-diabetic neuropathy) - so are you saying it has had a positive effect on your sugar control?

I could see the link since nerve pain would cause the release of hormones that also jack up our sugars so it would be great if you are killing two Beasts with one stone 😀

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There, fixed it - not the spice 😁

Hi Graham. I had part of my pancreas removed in 2008. Which has made me become diabetic. My blood sugars were good initially but over the years my sugars have climbed. I’m taking Jardinace which my body tolerates well, but when they add other meds including Metaformin I find the side effects / reaction are so bad & I feel so Ill that after 2 weeks I have to discontinue them. So now my blood sugars are climbing & I will probably need to go on to insulin ! A Very interesting article of yours Thanks

Metformin did not interact well with my liver and for me it was best to move to insulin something my body would recognize. since doing so my liver enzymes have finally come back normal.