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Question & Answer

We are discussing Living with Diabetes
With Angela Blair, Kristen Hazelwood and the Department of Health and Ageing

Question:
I have had diabetes for only a few months and my blood glucose tests are still over 10. My friend suggested that tablets might help. Before I visit the doctor can you advise what type of tablets there are for diabetes and how they work?

Answer:
Kristen - The first step in managing type 2 diabetes is to follow a healthy eating plan, increase your physical activity over the day and continue testing your blood glucose level. Education is important to increase your skills in these areas. Tablets may be the next step if these lifestyle changes don't keep the blood glucose levels in the target range of 4 to 8.

There are five groups of tablets used to manage diabetes each working in a different way to lower the blood glucose level. Tablets are not a form of oral insulin. Two groups stimulates insulin production but in different ways, another assists the body to be more sensitive to insulin, another increases the effect of the insulin and the last group slows digestion and absorption of glucose by the intestine. Tablets combined with lifestyle changes should result in blood glucose levels in the target range. Doses can vary and the tablets may be taken with meals once, twice or three times per per day.

Your doctor will assess your lifestyle, weight and duration of diabetes to decide which of these tablets will improve your diabetes control. It is important to take the medication as prescribed by you doctor. You may have to take a tablet from one or more groups with some people taking 2 or 3 different types of tablets.

Remember all medications have side-effects and it is important to discuss any new medications with your doctor to understand what effect you should expect, side-effects and what to do if these occur.

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