Type 2 Diabetes Medication Complications (esp Cancer)

After a person has been diagnosed with diabetes, his or her physician will recommend certain methods to cope with the condition, including diet modification and exercise. The physician will also prescribe a diabetes medication or medications depending on the severity of the condition. These medications may need to be adjusted based on the patient's response to treatment; however, some of these drugs cause harmful side effects that lead to severe consequences in some cases.

There are six types of oral medications commonly used to treat diabetes. One group is sulfonylureas, which is a classification of drug that stimulates the beta cells located within the pancreas. This results in the pancreas producing more insulin to combat blood glucose levels. Examples to this variety include chlorpropamide, glyburide and glimepiride. The side effects vary and are dependent upon the drug. For instance, glyburide may result in hypoglycemia, blurred vision and nausea.

Another categorization of diabetes medication is meglitinides. Meglitinides increase insulin product by targeting the beta cells in the pancreas, as well. Examples of this type of medication include nateglinide and repaglinide. The side effects vary, but the more common ones are diarrhea, cold-like symptoms and joint pain.

Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors like meglitol and acarbose fall under this category. They act by blocking the breakdown of starches, and in some cases, they slow the digestion of some sugars, such as table sugar. This impediment on digestion occurs in the intestines. These drugs are taken with the first bite of every meal and slow down the elevation of blood sugar levels after eating. Gastrointestinal problems like diarrhea and gas are the most common side effects of these medicines.

DPP-4 inhibitors do not cause hypoglycemia, although they may cause headaches or upper respiratory infection symptoms. Drugs in this category like saxagliptin and sitagliptin work by stopping GLP-1, a naturally occurring compound, from breaking down. This permits GLP-1 to stay in the body and continue to be active for longer periods of time. This prevents glucose levels from dropping, since it is effective when glucose levels are high.

Biguanides are a classification of diabetes medication that prevents the liver from producing more glucose than what is needed. Additionally, biguanides help the muscle tissue to be more receptive to insulin, thus making insulin absorption easier. These drugs can cause diarrhea and other side effects that are generally mild.

The last diabetes medication type is thiazolidinediones, which assist insulin in working better in the fatty tissue and in the muscles. They reduce the amount of glucose produced in the liver, too. They tend to cause mild side effects, such as cold-like symptoms. However, the thiazolidinedione, Actos may cause bladder cancer. In fact, patients who take the drug in large doses or for prolonged periods of time have an increased risk for bladder cancer. Actos treats type II diabetes and has been linked to numerous cases of bladder cancer. In fact, in some countries, the drug has been banned or not prescribed to new patients. France is one country that took action from these findings. They pulled the drug from the market once they conducted their own study on the diabetes medication.

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