(GoHealthier.com) – If you’re taking diabetes medication, you already know they come with side effects.
Conditions like nausea, diarrhea, constipation, and bloating are among the most common.
Now, none of these ailments are fun, but they are typically bearable for folks whose blood sugar is out of range.
Unfortunately, these aren’t the only worries for folks on a certain class of diabetes medication.
New research shows these drugs come with a dangerous side effect that could flip your life upside down.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Sulfonylureas – like Glipizide – are some of the oldest diabetes medications on the market, having been prescribed since 1956.
But it’s not until this recent study that we’ve become aware of how dangerous they can be.
For the research, scientists looked at diabetes drug use and impaired hypoglycemic awareness – the ability to detect when your blood sugar is low – in nearly 900 diabetics.
At the end, they found that folks taking sulfonylureas drugs for more than five years were THREE TIMES as likely to have impaired hypoglycemia awareness than those using insulin.
So, why is this dangerous? Lots of reasons.
Having extremely low blood sugar can lead to blurred vision, coordination issues, and even seizures.
And if you can’t tell your blood sugar is plummeting, it could lead to you having these symptoms in dangerous situations like driving a car, mowing the lawn, or cooking.
Experts report these drugs are prescribed to patients with mildly elevated blood sugars, meaning they may not need insulin to control their diabetes. 1
If you’re taking one of these drugs, NOW is the time to talk to your doctor about the signs of hypoglycemia and if there are other options to treat your diabetes.
Doing so may just save you from a dangerous blood sugar drop.
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