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Metformin side effects

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cazscot

cazscot

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi, Not sure if I am posting in the right place as I am new at this... I was diagnosed type 2 yesterday and put on 1 x 500g metformin with breakfast and 1 x 500g metformin at tea time. I have had severe tummy problems/nausea since last night. Will my tummy settle down eventually and how long do you think it might take?

Thanks
 
cazscot said:
Hi, Not sure if I am posting in the right place as I am new at this... I was diagnosed type 2 yesterday and put on 1 x 500g metformin with breakfast and 1 x 500g metformin at tea time. I have had severe tummy problems/nausea since last night. Will my tummy settle down eventually and how long do you think it might take?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Dear cazscot,

Firstlty, welcome to the forum this is exactlly the right place to ask any questions you have! A lot of people get "tummy problems" when they first take Metformin - it usually clears up after a few weeks. If it doesn't, go back to your doctor and ask him/her if he/she will let you have the "extended release" version. For example Glucophage SR.

Regards Dodger
 
hi there caz yes as dodger said many of us have had problems with metformin me being one of them , so much so i had to go see the doc and get put onto the liquid metformin, it will clear up in a couple of weeks usually does for most
 
Caz, I've been on the Metformin for two weeks now and the tummy troubles were settling down nicely till the Doctor put me on statins as well (high cholesterol) so now I'm going through the whole thing again. 🙄

Give it a week or two and if it hasn't settled, ask your doctor if you can reduce the dosage for a while.
 
I go along with what the others have said. I was on 500mg metformin 3 times a day when I was first diagnosed. After 6 months, I decided I had had enough, not only was I struggling to take it 3 times a day (due to irregular eating habits), I really couldn't deal with the GI side effects as they were ruling my life. My consultant changed me to 1g glucophage which he told me to take with my evening meal - he said that as it was a slow release version of metformin it was gentler and the effects do seem to be better. It may be a silly question, but are you taking it within 20 min either side of eating? I've come across a few people who didn't and if you take it without eating within 20 min you will get the full blast of side effects (please excuse the bad pun 😉)
 
Hi there Caz, you are in the right place for asking questions. Welcome to the forums. The side effects from metformin settle after a while. If it is too uncomfortable some people find things like imodium helps, but take advice first. If that fails some people find slow release metformin is better, but you need to talk to your doctor about it.
 
Hi and welcome to the forum.

I found that the side effects are not so bad if I take them with food.
 
Thanks

Many thanks everybody. I will wait a couple of weeks to see if it settles. Thanks again.
 
metformin

Hi, I was put straight onto 500mg of glucophage sr for 10 days then onto 2 x 5mg, had blood test last week and was 7, but still not low enough she says so onto 3 x 500mg a day, but i take the all together in the evening after i have eaten. I havnt had any side effects at all. I saw sone of you take these 3 times a day, is my nurse wrong? should i be taking them 3 times a day, or all together?
 
Lynneb, your nurse isn't wrong, it depends on what works for you. I was on 2 500mg tablets that I took with my evening meal, I then tried splitting the dose to try to lessen the side effects but it didn't work for me. On Tuesday I saw the consultant and he put me on Sitagliptin which doesn't seem to have the GI effects that metformin has. Apparently, it also helps weight loss and is unlikely to give me hypos.
 
lynneb said:
Hi, I was put straight onto 500mg of glucophage sr for 10 days then onto 2 x 5mg, had blood test last week and was 7, but still not low enough she says so onto 3 x 500mg a day, but i take the all together in the evening after i have eaten. I havnt had any side effects at all. I saw sone of you take these 3 times a day, is my nurse wrong? should i be taking them 3 times a day, or all together?
Click to expand...

I am presuming the SR stands for slow release so you don't need to take more frequently.
 
hiya lynne no nurse is not wrong like pshycho says it is whatever works for you , i was firstly put on 1 then 2 then after all my bother was pput into the liquid.
 
Hi Caz,

Like they all said what you are seeing seems to be pretty common.

I too had problems at first but they cleared up after a couple of weeks.

So stick with it and know you do not suffer alone!
We're all in this together!

Hope it all works out.

Chris
 
srry to say this but you will have the troubles for a while untill your system gets used to the medication ,
my big problem was the simvestatin for high blood [even though ive never had high blood press]it caused me to have ibs,
 
I was put on 850mg twice a day, but have had a dreadful week of 'side effects' so been back to the docs tonight and he has suggested reducing to once a day to see how that goes.

Fingers crossed 🙂
 
simvastatin

hi william
i think you will find simvastatin is for high colestrol, not high bp. I too am on simvastatin, but have been for 2 yrs. had no side effects though.
thanks everyone for respones.
I am having bad attack of almost compulsive eating, after having lost 2 1/2 stone. is this normal too?
 
lynneb said:
hi william
i think you will find simvastatin is for high colestrol, not high bp. I too am on simvastatin, but have been for 2 yrs. had no side effects though.
thanks everyone for respones.
I am having bad attack of almost compulsive eating, after having lost 2 1/2 stone. is this normal too?
Click to expand...

Hi Lynne, I am having the complete opposite on my metformin I have a definate decrease in appatite. But then a lot of that could be psychological because I am worried the metformin is going to upset my tummy again so dont want to eat much in case - if that makes sense...
 
William, it's likely to be worse if you take it on an empty stomach. It certainly was for me. Now I take my pills immediately after a meal and I have less trouble.
 
Watch out for Vitamin B12 deficiency

Hi,

Remember that prolonged use of Metformin CAN lead to a Vitamin B12 deficiency. It did with me, and now I have to have B12 shots every two months.

All drugs can have unexpected side-effects (ill-effects).

Be careful about taking ANY of the statin range. They,too, can have devastating ill-effects. Simvastatin did with me. Muscular degeneration has severely affected my ability to walk !!!!

For information, please read:
'The Statin Damage Crisis' by Dr. Duane Graveline MD.

or: 'The Great Cholesterol Con' by Dr. Malcolm Kendrick MD.
 
Last edited:
Bill Wilson said:
...For information, please read:
'The Statin Crisis' by Dr. Duane Graveline MD.

or: 'The Great Cholesterol Con' by Dr. Malcolm Kendrick MD.
Click to expand...

Thanks Bill - I have ordered The Great Cholesterol Con - ?5.49 from the Book Depository with free p+p!

I have been concerned for some time that I don't really need to be taking simvastatin, perhaps this book will help clarify the issues.
 
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