Metformin medication to keep A1C in check

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AwesomeOpossum74
AwesomeOpossum74 Posts: 106 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
My (recent) medical history: My 2015 doctor well visit revealed that I was prediabetic with A1C at 5.9. I also had a number of other deficiencies, e.g. vitamin D. In my next well visit in 2016 my A1C had been reduced to 5.6 (normal). Yahoo!

My next well visit (today) returned A1C 5.6 again. Still normal, but I feel I could still improve.

My doctor was telling me I might be able to use Metformin, even though I'm no longer in the danger zone, and likely bring my A1C to 5.3. Sounds really good, right?

I'm curious if others who are non-diabetic, but may be taking Metformin, have experienced positives or negatives?

Replies

  • yweight2020
    yweight2020 Posts: 591 Member
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    I take metformin and wouldnt take it with an A1C as good (normal) as yours, I have the vitamin D deficiency as well and I'm confused to why your doctor recommending this med when your level is normal. I would get a second opinion, with all my expereince with this disease with myself and family, no doctor ever recommended meds at that level, what they say is if its borderline control your nutrition and exercise and they constantly check and momitor you for changes good ir bad and borderline is usually above 6 not in the 5 range.

    Best of care to you.
  • AwesomeOpossum74
    AwesomeOpossum74 Posts: 106 Member
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    sexysizeme wrote: »
    I take metformin and wouldnt take it with an A1C as good (normal) as yours, I have the vitamin D deficiency as well and I'm confused to why your doctor recommending this med when your level is normal.
    His explanation was that I'm in the high range of normal, and hadn't moved down in the last 1.5 years. Type 2 diabetes runs in my family, and taking Metformin as a preventative might help give me a few more years of non-diabetic life, rather than waiting and taking it reactively to the diabetic condition.

    I'm not a pill taker, but I may be willing to take Metformin, because the effects of diabetes scare me. I'm still working on my life health changes, and the changes I've made have certainly been net positive. I'm thinking I will hold for a little while and see what my increased cardio does.


  • WholeFoods4Lyfe
    WholeFoods4Lyfe Posts: 1,517 Member
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    I wouldn't take Metformin ever if I could avoid it, but especially not with an A1C of only 5.6. I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic with an A1C of 6.0 and decided to change my diet to get my numbers back in a normal range.
  • mitch16
    mitch16 Posts: 2,113 Member
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    I would be much more inclined to trying to lower my A1C through weight loss, diet, and exercise over taking a (possibly unneccessary) medication.
  • tammycolbert
    tammycolbert Posts: 236 Member
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    That A1C is really good. Mine is at 7, given metformin to take and it makes me so sick. Please try not to take unnecessary medication.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    Meformin comes with known side effects, which includes a looser bowel movement. This can be avoided by increasing the dosage slowly so the body adapts. Always take Metformin with food.

    Metformin has all kinds of positive metabolic effects on the body, and it won't drop your blood sugar in the danger zone. I think it is worth trying.
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
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    I was on Metformin before I lost weight and was very happy to quit taking it. Losing weight and exercising has me in the normal range. I would take it again if my sugars go up but at this point I certainly have no desire to take it again. I'm with the rest, if you don't need it don't take it until you do.
  • AJB1014
    AJB1014 Posts: 1,380 Member
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    Hi - I'm a woman with PCOS and I currently take metformin.

    My A1C was 5.7 when I started taking it. It is down to 5.3 after about 2 years. BUT, I've only recently committed myself fully to improved diet. The side effects only bothered me when I was not eating well - I would have the upset stomach, diarrhea, etc. but with an improved diet I've had none of those issues. For me, it has helped most when I am helping myself.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
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    Metformin seems to be the best of IR drugs, IMO. It seems to be helpful to longevity in general if you can tolerate it well.

    That being said, diet and fasting can often help with lowering A1C and improving IR. Fung's books: Obesity Code and Diabetes Code, are both aimed at how to reduce insulin and BG through diet and fasting, and can be a good tool to use for weight loss. Many find that adopting a ketogenic (under 50g carbs) or low carb diet (under 100-150g carbs) is enough to normalize BG readings quickly. If you really limit carbohydrates, which turn to blood glucose in the body, your blood glucose stays lower.

    https://highintensityhealth.com/sarah-hallberg-ketogenic-diet-heart-health-new-research-updates/
  • ksz1104
    ksz1104 Posts: 260 Member
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    I have been taking metformin for the last two years, 500 mg twice a day. I also started off at an a1c of 5.9. My last two a1c tests were 5.3. While I am sure that I could maintain without the medication, I am still taking it as of now because I went off it for a few weeks due to not being able to fill my prescription and I noticed a change in my sugar readings. I am not as disciplined with my diet right now as I should be, but once i set my mind to do it, I may come off it. My doctor even asked if I wanted to come off. It's a personal decision.
  • dsboohead
    dsboohead Posts: 1,900 Member
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    AIC of 5.6 is normal. If you want to start and pay for a medication to lower AIC by a few .3 points go ahead.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
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    Your A1C is normal...even at the higher end, I wouldn't even consider it. I was pre-diabetic when I started and didn't even consider it then and was only going to consider it if I couldn't get my numbers down by cleaning up my diet and getting in regular exercise.

  • allmannerofthings
    allmannerofthings Posts: 829 Member
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    Metformin gave me lots of stomach issues. I now take the extended release version which is not so bad but still a problem. My doctor told me that type 2 diabetes is progressive and I should expect to need more as I get older. My main motivation for getting my diet and fitness back on track has been to reduce the metformin dose. YMMV
  • ashliedelgado
    ashliedelgado Posts: 814 Member
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    I used to work in Endocrinology and it was not uncommon to hear of patients passing them whole... this was 3 years ago so I don't know if they've changed anything. But I definitely would not want to take a medication that I just sent on a tour of my GI tract just because it might help things that are already okay get better.

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