Reduce the Side Effects of Metformin

It's a surprise to me when I hear someone say, "I have been on Metformin for X amount of time, and I still suffer from the side effects!"  Through a little bit of research and a little bit of personal trial-and-error, I have discovered that while you may not be able to completely alleviate all side effects of Metformin, you can at least reduce them.  There are so many people who are afraid of taking Metformin because of the terrible side effects they hear tell about.  But there's no need to be afraid if you're willing to put in just a skosh of actual effort.

1.  Start Metformin by itself.  You need to make sure that when you first start taking Metformin, you are not starting any other medications at the same time.  You want to start Metformin by itself, so you're able to gauge your reaction to it.  If you're already taking a medication, that's fine, keep taking it.  But try not to start any other medications for 2 weeks before or 2 weeks after starting Metformin.

2.  Ease yourself into it.   This goes with any new medications.  "Wean" yourself onto the Metformin.  Adjust your dosage size (with your Dr.'s permission, of course).  Take less of it at the beginning, and gradually increase your dosage until you are taking the recommended amount.  For more information on this, see my post here about how adjusting my Metformin dosage made all the difference in my initial reaction to it. 

3.  Purchase a cheap blood glucose monitor.  This is really just a precaution.  Metformin will lower your blood sugar, and it's just good practice to be able to check it when you're feeling "off."  It is very rare that Metformin will lower your sugar enough to make you hypoglycemic, but better safe than sorry.

4.  Watch what you eat!  This is the BIG one.  I can't tell you how many people do not know this about Metformin!  It's actually quite scary that so many people take it and have no idea about this.  Loading up on carbs and sugar while taking Metformin will always give you an... *ahem* laxative effect.  If you are eating properly (that is, low carb and low sugar), your chances for "intestinal distress" are greatly decreased. 

5.  Take Metformin with your last meal (preferrably protein-heavy).  There are actually two reasons for this.  First, when you take it at the end of the day, you are able to think back about what you ate that day.  You'll know that if you had a good deal of carbs and sugar, that you will either have to "suffer the consequences" or opt to skip the pill that day.  Second, when taken late in the day with a good amount of protein, you are simply less likely to have any issues. 

6.  Get some activity.  It seems to me that on "lazy" days I have more abdominal cramping than on days where I get a good 30 minutes of exercise.  The good news - the exercise does not have to be strenuous!  Something as simple as 30 minutes of cardio or even yoga is good enough to keep the "loose bowel monster" at bay.  ;)

I'm not claiming that if you follow these steps that you will be 100% side-effect-free, but I know that your side effects will be less troublesome.  If you follow all of these steps and are still having issues, it might be time to consider another medication.  Metformin does not work for everyone, but if you aren't willing to put in any effort at all, it almost certainly will not work for you.