Gliclazide + Metformin Tablets to Control Your Blood Sugar Levels

Last updated on August 30th, 2022

Gliclazide directly stimulates the secretion of insulin in your body. It helps in controlling your blood sugar spikes. Many doctors recommend a combination of Gliclazide and Metformin to have the dual action in managing blood sugar levels. It is essential to take the diabetes medications after proper consultation with a doctor. It will prevent the side effects. Taking Gliclazide-Metformin tablets in the wrong way can potentially result in hypoglycemia. Diabetes patients should also check the drug interaction to avoid side effects.

With the increasing number of diabetes cases, several diabetes medications are now available in the market. Such medicines help diabetes patients to keep their blood sugar levels to normal levels and help them to live a healthy life. One of the safest diabetes medicine is Metformin. Many times, Metformin is taken in combination with the other diabetes medicines to manage your diabetes effectively. Gliclazide-Metformin is one such medicine that is popular these days.

Gliclazide + Metformin

Gliclazide and Metformin are oral medicines for diabetes management. The combination of Gliclazide and Metformin works better with diet and exercise to improve blood glucose levels. It treats diabetes type-2, the patients with diabetes type-1 may get its benefit in managing diabetes. Though both the medications lower blood glucose levels, they work differently. Gliclazide increases Insulin production in your body, while Metformin reduces the amount of glucose that the liver produces.

Side Effects of Gliclazide + Metformin

Since there are so many anti-diabetes medicines so you should not start taking the medications without a prescription. It will lead to several side effects. The same happens with Gliclazide-Metformin Tablets. Taking this medication can cause some side effects to diabetes patients. In such a case, you need to stop taking Gliclazide-Metformin tablets immediately.

Some side effects of Gliclazide-Metformin tablets are:

• Stomach upset
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Headache
• Stuffy nose
• Sore throat

Some diabetes patients even experience rash, itching, bruising, weakness, fever, or shivering. These are mild symptoms and often go away without medication.

Ways to Cope Up With the Mild Side-Effects

Some of the ways to cope up with the mild side effects are:

• For stomach upset or indigestion, take a rest and relax. You need to eat and drink slowly. Instead of having a big meal, small and frequent meals make you feel better. Placing a hot water bag also helps in treating your upset stomach and indigestion.
• If you feel nausea, stick to the oil-free meals. Avoid taking rich and spicy meals. Also, take your Gliclazide-Metformin Tablets with the meals.
• Some people taking Gliclazide-Metformin may face the problem of constipation. They should eat fiber-rich food, include more fruits and vegetables in the diet, and drink lots of water. Simple exercises like walking, jogging, and yoga can also give them relief from constipation.
• Vomiting and diarrhea are the other mild side effects of taking Gliclazide-Metformin tablets.  If you feel like vomiting or suffering from severe loose motions, drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration. Do not take any medicine to treat vomiting or diarrhea without consultation. It can affect your blood sugar levels and make you sick more.

However, you may need to contact the doctor if these side effects continue for a longer time or become bothersome.

Serious Side-Effects of Gliclazide-Metformin

The serious side effects of Gliclazide-Metformin can be fatal for your life if you do not take immediate help from the doctor. You need to call the doctor straight away if you see the following symptoms after taking Gliclazide-Metformin:

• Prolonged bleeding, paleness on your face and body, sore throat, or fever can be the symptoms of a blood disorder.
• Yellowing of sclera of your eyes or yellow skin can be a sign of a liver problem.
• Sudden swelling of the eyelids, redness, skin rashes, itching, and hives, and breathing difficulty are the problems that are signs of a skin disorder called Angioedema.
• Temporarily loss of vision for a short time as a result of low blood sugar levels.

Low Blood Sugar Levels Due to Gliclazide-Metformin

The combined action of Gliclazide and Metformin can sometimes cause Hypoglycemia. There can be a sudden drop in your blood sugar level. Sometimes, the patients are unable to understand that their blood sugar is getting low. The early signs and symptoms of low blood sugar levels are:

• Sweating
• Confusion
•  Problem in concentrating
• Dizziness
• Feeling hungry
• Trembling

Diabetes patients may experience hypoglycemia while asleep. It can make them feel sweaty and tired. They may also feel confused after waking up.

Causes of Hypoglycemia: Some causes of Hypoglycemia when you are taking Gliclazide-Metformin tablets are:

• Taking too much of Gliclazide
• Irregular meals
• Pre-existing liver and kidney problems while you start taking Gliclazide-Metformin Tablets
• Drink alcohol, especially empty stomach
• Taking some other medicine that can interfere with the working of Gliclazide

Take all the precautions to take tablets to avoid Hypoglycemia. Carry the fast-acting carbohydrates along with you. It will help you to maintain your blood sugar levels instantly if you experience the symptoms of low blood sugar levels.

Metabolic Complication

The metabolic complication is one of the serious side-effects of Gliclazide-Metformin Tablet. However, lactic acidosis is rare.  The metabolic complication occurs due to the accumulation of Metformin while treating high blood sugar levels with Gliclazide-Metformin tablets. The increase in the blood lactate levels shows that you have developed lactic acidosis. Thus, your Metformin plasma levels are more than 5 μg/mL. Though, the chances of developing lactic acidosis in diabetes patients taking Metformin is low.

Also Read: Galvus met 50/500 mg tablet uses 

Increase in Risk of Cardiovascular Mortality

The administration of the Gliclazide-Metformin or some other diabetes control medicines can increase cardiovascular mortality. The risk of developing cardiovascular mortality is high in diabetes patients taking medications to control diabetes than the patients following a diabetic diet and exercising to manage blood sugar levels. Therefore, you should inform your doctor if you have any heart-related health issues or cardiovascular problems before developing diabetes type-2. It will help you to maintain your cardiovascular health and avoid complications.

Also Read: Diet Plan For Diabetes Patient India

Caution With the Medicines While Taking Gliclazide + Metformin

It easily interacts with other medicines. They interfere with the way Gliclazide works. They interfere with the way Gliclazide works. Here is a list of some medicines that you should tell your doctor while taking medicine:

• Steroid tablets
• Painkillers
• Medicines for treating asthma
• Medications for treating heart problems
• Medicine to treat bacterial and fungus infection
• Medicine for boosting male and female hormones
• Other diabetes medicines
• Medications for thinning your blood

If you are taking any of these medicines, you should talk to your doctor to help you avoid the side effects.

Avoid Mixing Herbal Medications and Supplements with Gliclazide-Metformin Tablets

The working of the Gliclazide-Metformin tablet can interfere not only with the allopathic medications but with herbal medications as well. Therefore, do not mix the herbal medicines and supplements with medicine. It may change how your body processes Gliclazide. Even if you are taking Vitamin or other health supplements, you should avoid Gliclazide-Metformin.

Also Read: Janumet tablet side effects

Drug Interaction of Glipizide and Metformin

Some drugs cause hyperglycemia and may lead to the loss of blood sugar control. Such drugs include corticosteroids, oral contraceptives, phenothiazines, thyroid products, thiazides, and other diuretics, estrogens, nicotinic acid, phenytoin, sympathomimetics, calcium channel blocking drugs, and isoniazid. It can cause a severe drop in blood sugar levels if you give any of these drugs to the patients taking medicine. Sometimes, it leads to loss of consciousness or death. Therefore, consult your doctor to avoid drug interaction.

Dosage of Gliclazide and Metformin

The dosage of Gliclazide-Metformin for adults with diabetes type-2 are:

• Patients with inadequate glycemic control on diet and exercise should start with 2.5 mg-250 mg tablets orally once a day.
• Diabetes patients who have Fasting Blood Glucose levels between 280 and 320 mg/dL can take the initial dose of 2.5-500 mg twice a day.
• The doctors recommend the initial dose of 2.5 mg-500 mg or 5 mg- 500 mg twice a day to the patients with inadequate Glycemic control on Glipizide and Metformin.

Also Read: Best Rated Glucometer in India

Points to Remember for the Dosage of Gliclazide-Metformin

There are few things to remember regarding the Gliclazide and Metformin dosage. It will help you to maintain your blood sugar levels healthily:

• Do not exceed the daily dose of gliclazide and metformin.
• Monitor the signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia.
• The initial doses should be conservative to prevent hypoglycemia. It can be due to gliclazide and gastrointestinal side effects because of Metformin.
• Take Gliclazide-Metformin tablets with meals.

Ensure to take Gliclazide-Metformin tablets in adjunct to diabetic diet and exercise to improve glycemic control in patients with type-2.

Overdose: If you miss a dose, do not try to overdose Gliclazide-Metformin. It can lead to low blood sugar levels. Symptoms of overdose include headache, shakiness, an increase in hunger, and sweating. If you mistakenly overdose on the medication, consult your doctor immediately to prevent the consequences of hypoglycemia.

Gliclazide-Metformin in Pregnancy and Breastfeeding

Women having diabetes at the time of conceiving or develop gestational diabetes need to take diabetes control medications. It helps them to keep their blood sugar levels in control and avoid the related complications in their pregnancy. However, they should not start with any diabetes control medication without a prescription. Gliclazide-Metformin is one of the anti-diabetes medicine that is not suitable for pregnant women and lactating mothers. It can cause harm to the unborn baby. Gliclazide may also pass through the breast milk to the baby.

Also Read: Hba1c test normal range

Storage of Gliclazide-Metformin Tablets

The storage of Gliclazide-Metformin tablets plays a critical role in giving the best results in managing diabetes. Store Gliclazide-Metformin tablets at room temperature between 59 and 86 degrees F. Keep the pack of this medicine away from direct sunlight, heat, and moisture. Make sure to keep it away from the reach of the children. If you are traveling with medicine keep it in the original packing or store it in the air-tight container.

FAQs:

References:

1. https://www.drugs.com/mtm/glipizide-and-metformin.html
2. https://www.medicinenet.com/gliclazide-oral_tablet/article.htm
3. https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/gliclazide/
4. https://go.drugbank.com/drugs/DB01120
5. https://www.rxlist.com/metaglip-drug.htm#precautions
6. https://www.1mg.com/generics/gliclazide-metformin-401785
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5783821/
8. https://healthtalk.org/diabetes-type-2/controlling-diabetes-with-metformin-and-other-medications

Last Updated on August 30, 2022 by Dr. Damanjit Duggal