I just started my water fast and was curious if I continue taking Metformin. I take 500ml twice daily with lisinopril.
You need to talk to your Doctor. Don't take internet advice.
Says a person on the Internet giving advice.
Such a hypocrite… geez.
/s
Just kidding, totally talk to the doc first.
I’ve gotten a few different answers from healthcare providers which is why I’m asking here. :)
Did you talk to the one that prescribed the Metaformin? No one here can give you any answers.
Yes but she doesn’t specialize and is a general practitioner
Talk to your pcp. No one knows your a1c level here or your health history.
Talk with a general practitioner/pcp that prescribed you the meds and listen to that dr’s advice. It’s just metformin and not a big deal, general practitioner’s prescribe metformin all the time, prob the most common med after atorvastatin.
Don’t listen to my advice without consulting a dr. But if you are taking high dosage of metformin like 100mg, you should prob stay on it unless you feel dizzy or nauseous. Again talk to your doctor, general practitioner is fine.
And apparently not a good doctor. Again, this is not something to mess with. You need professional assistance. No one here can prescribe drugs like metaformin. Do you understand how it works, and the effects of fasting? This is not something to mess around with.
Your GP should be monitoring your blood work to give you an accurate answer.
Metformin is a biguanide anti-hyperglycemic agent. It works by decreasing glucose production in the liver, increasing the insulin sensitivity of body tissues, and increasing GDF15 secretion, which reduces appetite and caloric intake.
The most common symptoms following an overdose include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, tachycardia, drowsiness, and rarely, hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia.
Please please please consult with your doctor and not weirdos like me on reddit 🙏🏻
I’ve gotten a few different answers from healthcare professionals so that’s why I’m asking :)
Stick with your own GP, he knows your condition better than anyone else
I’m seeing my GP on Thursday. She prescribed metformin and is a huge supporter of fasting and this was on my list to ask her. Currently I have only been taking it on days I eat. Not sure if that’s right or not 😬
FWIW My endocrinologist advised me to do exactly what you're doing — skip it on non-eating days. Obviously everyone's different and your doctor should tell you what she thinks is best for you, but I'm doing what you're doing and I'm coming along well!
Well, I would second the advice to talk to your doctor, but the pharmacist sounds like a good alternative.
You don't say what your glucose levels, A1c, BMI, etc are. So it's a little hard to know what to say to you.
Let me give you my situation: I am T2, BMI ~23, 6'2", 178 lbs. I've been taking metformin for 15 years, BP meds and Bupropion. I've been doing fasting for about 2 years. I often skip the Metformin when I'm not eating, because sometimes it wrecks my stomach. My glucose never goes too low, and if I'm not eathing, it doesn't get high either. Metformin seems to be fairly benign, or even beneficial, so I take it most of the time. I take my other meds on schedule, because they don't need food.
Not a doctor here. According to Google:
Metformin helps to control the amount of glucose (sugar) in your blood. It decreases the amount of glucose you absorb from your food and the amount of glucose made by your liver. Metformin also increases your body's response to insulin, a natural substance that controls the amount of glucose in the blood.
With that in mind, if you're water fasting, your body isn't absorbing sugar from food. More so, any glucose produced by your body will be used as energy while you're fasting. Have you ever fasted and checked your blood sugar? Odds are, the machine will say it's low and you should eat.
So to conclude, as a non doctor normie with my own sense, I would absolutely not take it; but if you must, I would take it for like the first three days of fasting, monitor your levels to see where it is, and then stop taking it for the remainder of the fast.
That's just me.
Thank you so much for this.
No problem, bud!
I’m going to echo what everyone else here is saying…. Don’t fast without talking to your primary care physician first and discussing safety + how to adjust medications.
If you need specifics on medication in different circumstances, your pharmacist is also a good person to talk to. Pharmacists know medications better than anyone.
Obligatory “ask your doctor!” disclaimer, of course.
Anecdotal: I’ve water fasted for a few days while on Metformin. No side effects to speak of. Make sure to monitor your blood sugar levels though, just to be safe.
I’d hold both.
I can’t see a benefit of taking either while fasting.
You could also take both and measure your blood sugar and blood pressure.
I definitely don’t think ACE-inhibitors while fasting is ideal. Hydration would be key if you did.
I’m not sure 95% of providers know anything about fasting.
I’m prediabetic and only do intermittent fasting because I don’t trust internet people’s opinion on my health condition while taking medicine & managing fasting.
Of course standard answer #1 is ask your doctor.
But in lieu of that, you could take a look at Fasting for Survival on YouTube.
The doctor there recommended continuing to take Metformin.
During my recent long fast I found Metformin was giving me gastrointestinal upset. I stopped taking it and found my blood sugar stayed low.
Once I started refeeding it spiked and I resumed taking it.
I have just started another fast a day ago, and I am still taking the Metformin. I’m going to play it by ear and see if it causes havoc with my stomach again.
Many issues and questions can be answered by reading through our wiki, especially the page on electrolytes. Concerns such as intense hunger, lightheadedness/dizziness, headaches, nausea/vomiting, weakness/lethargy/fatigue, low blood pressure/high blood pressure, muscle soreness/cramping, diarrhea/constipation, irritability, confusion, low heart rate/heart palpitations, numbness/tingling, and more while extended (24+ hours) fasting are often explained by electrolyte deficiency and resolved through PROPER electrolyte supplementation. Putting a tiny amount of salt in your water now and then is NOT proper supplementation.
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