[foxl]

aka, Glucobay, precose, prandase?

Since I keep beefing about my rapid starch digestion, maybe I oughtta try it?

Anybody? Were the side effects tolerable? Cost?

Are you still using it, and why not?

[Rekarb]

I was looking at this as maybe a way to deal with the whole 1st phase problem. It reminds me of another drug that pushes the digestion of starches further down the intestinal tract with the usual attendant gas and possibly cramps.

It has to be taken just before eating. I'm thinking that a small bolus would do about the same thing.

Mike

[foxl]

Originally Posted by Rekarb

I was looking at this as maybe a way to deal with the whole 1st phase problem. It reminds me of another drug that pushes the digestion of starches further down the intestinal tract with the usual attendant gas and possibly cramps.

It has to be taken just before eating. I'm thinking that a small bolus would do about the same thing.

Mike

If I could talk anyone into giving me small boluses, I would not be asking ... but I suspect this is true. Which were you looking into?

[Rekarb]

Originally Posted by foxl

If I could talk anyone into giving me small boluses, I would not be asking ... but I suspect this is true. Which were you looking into?

It was byetta. Teala sent me a bunch of info on it. I'm taking the Bernstein position on a lot of this stuff. If all its doing is imitating insulin then get the insulin.

Mike

[foxl]

Originally Posted by Rekarb

It was byetta. Teala sent me a bunch of info on it. I'm taking the Bernstein position on a lot of this stuff. If all its doing is imitating insulin then get the insulin.

Mike

Well ... while I can see his point, these drugs act in different tissues and ways ... and therefore, may help some people more than others, and avoid certain side effects. I sound like a drug rep, LOL. I understand his thinking, but at the same time, he is where he is because of minimal insulin use. And I do believe there is the potential for (not saying I know of anything, but) long-term high-dose insulin to have its own deleterious effects.

But with your profile, and mine, that might not be an issue anyhow?

[Rekarb]

Originally Posted by foxl

Well ... while I can see his point, these drugs act in different tissues and ways ... and therefore, may help some people more than others, and avoid certain side effects. I sound like a drug rep, LOL. I understand his thinking, but at the same time, he is where he is because of minimal insulin use. And I do believe there is the potential for (not saying I know of anything, but) long-term high-dose insulin to have its own deleterious effects.

But with your profile, and mine, that might not be an issue anyhow?

I'm certainly a believer in taking whatever works. What I'm actually talking about is approach. I want to take the simplest step possible with the least possible side effects. This way I can hopefully see my next step, clearly. I'm figuring this process will take me a year or more so there isn't any big rush. The diabetes certainly isn't going anywhere.

The spikes are my concern right now. If I could shave those spikes by 20 to 40 points I would never go over 140. Glucose toxicity is gone as an issue and maybe, just maybe, I could recover more of my 1st phase. The amount of insulin to do something like this would be tiny. I average about 110 as my fasting number. Even if I screwed up and took a bolus that dropped me by 40 pts, I would go down to 70.

Mike

[foxl]

Yes, it probably won't take much insulin for you!

I am not having HUGE spikes, but then I am not eating very much carb. I can however see baseline (ie, fasting) deterioration. Not much, but a gradual increase of about 20 - 30 pts ... and I am still maintaining/losing weight. It also appears to be belly I am losing, from my clothing.

[Rekarb]

Originally Posted by foxl

Yes, it probably won't take much insulin for you!

I am not having HUGE spikes, but then I am not eating very much carb. I can however see baseline (ie, fasting) deterioration. Not much, but a gradual increase of about 20 - 30 pts ... and I am still maintaining/losing weight. It also appears to be belly I am losing, from my clothing.

Now that I'm passed the "being tired stage" of carbing, I've dropped my carb intake way down. If I make 30 a day, I'm doing something. This is very necessary because I spike very easily. You have to be eating, at least, twice as many carbs as me, yet, as you say, your spikes aren't huge. This says to me that your 1st phase is behaving pretty good. The rise in baseline is curious though. Could it be seasonal? Neither of us have been diabetic that long so everything we see is new. We haven't had the time to know whether something is our natural oscillation or something to worry about. Of course, that c-pep would help there. If it were going up then this change you're seeing might be temporary.

Mike

[foxl]

I had not even considered my C-pep might still be increasing ... I am 10 months out, now. That would sure be a revelation! It could be unchanged ... but then why would my fastings go up ... with mild weight loss? Oh, I forgot, this is D and NOBODY KNOWS everything, really!

[Caravaggio]

Originally Posted by foxl

aka, Glucobay, precose, prandase?

Since I keep beefing about my rapid starch digestion, maybe I oughtta try it?

Anybody? Were the side effects tolerable? Cost?

Are you still using it, and why not?

I'm taking 50 mg. of Glucobay with breakfast, lunch and dinner. I've not noticed any side effects. It helps me keep my post-meal BG down.

[Reba55]

I use Byetta and love it. Its a pen injection, I don't even feel it. I take it twice a day, once before lunch, and once before dinner. I've been on it about 6 weeks and have lost 12 pounds! My numbers are coming down too. I have insurance, so it is only a $10 co-pay for me. At first, I did feel a bit nauseous, but that passed quickly.

[foxl]

Originally Posted by Reba55

I use Byetta and love it. Its a pen injection, I don't even feel it. I take it twice a day, once before lunch, and once before dinner. I've been on it about 6 weeks and have lost 12 pounds! My numbers are coming down too. I have insurance, so it is only a $10 co-pay for me. At first, I did feel a bit nauseous, but that passed quickly.

Doesn't Byetta work somewhat differently, than Symlin, though?

[Reba55]

Linda,
I don't know, as I'm not real sure what "symlin" is.
Byetta, along with Metformin, helps the pancreas produce insulin more efficiently. The food you eat stays in the stomach longer before emptying into the small intestine,therefore you feel fuller longer. After injecting Byetta, I wait 30 min to an hour to eat, then after eating, I am full and it has really helped me not to snack later into the night. I love it!