|
• Oral
Medications
In addition to
injected insulin, diabetes medication comes in the form of pills known as
oral hypoglycemic agents, which lower the blood sugar level. They have been
used since 1956 when the first of the drugs became available. Because the
American Diabetes Association recommends that the basis of treatment in most
cases of non-insulin-dependent diabetes should be diet, they say that oral
drugs (as well as insulin) should most usually be prescribed only after diet
therapy alone has failed. At times, however, they can be used as weight
reduction is being achieved and medical conditions require blood sugar to be
lowered.
Your physician may initially recommend that you use the blood sugar-lowering
pills to determine if you can control your disease that way. Along with
taking the pills it will be important to follow your diet, exercise, try to
remove some of the stressful factors from your life, and monitor your sugar
level. This may be effective for patients who are still producing insulin
but not enough of it to control their blood sugar without these drugs.
Diabetes pills are not oral insulin. While they can significantly reduce the
blood sugar level in non-insulin-dependent diabetics, insulin-dependent
diabetics. If the pills are effective, they cause the pancreas to produce
extra insulin. The pills work only if the pancreas can still produce
insulin. If you are effective, they cause the pancreas to produce extra
insulin. The pills work only if the pancreas can still produce insulin. If
you are a fess severely afflicted non-insulin-dependent diabetic, your
physician may prescribe the pills for you. Pills may be prescribed for
non-insulin dependent diabetics whose activities don't permit regular meals
or for those whose irregular schedules would interfere with the use of
insulin. Some people, such as those with poor vision, have difficulty using
syringes and are not given insulin for that reason if sufficient, though
less than ideal, control can be achieved. If bors, or your health care team
may be developed. Such a system can provide help in working out methods for
your treatment.
The various oral medications available have different instructions and
different degrees of effectiveness for different people. Some are taken only
once a day, and others have to be taken as often as three times a day.
Hypoglycemic reactions are much less frequent with pills because pills work
more slowly than injected insulin and are usually less potent. If you take
insulin, the blood sugar level goes down, whether or not you eat. With pills
the pancreas still produces some insulin as a response to the chemical
action within your body. Some researchers say that use of pills makes the
body tissues more receptive to the insulin that is produced, and thus the
insulin you have is used more efficiently.
Another advantage of pills in that you will be less hungry than with
injected insulin, because while your blood sugar won't drop as low or as
fast, your appetite won't be stimulated as much.
If you take oral medication for diabetes, it is important to know that these
pills may interact unfavorably with some other medications. For example,
aspirin and some prescription drugs intensify the effects of diabetes pills.
Additionally, you should know that some drugs, such as diuretics, steroids,
nicotinic acids, and birth control pills may interfere with the
effectiveness of diabetes pills. That's why it is essential that you tell
your physician that you are taking other medications if you are advised to
take a medication for your diabetes.
|
