Stomach Virus & Metformin

jcaruso4316 · 04-09-2009, 09:14 PM

I just caught the stomach virus my daughter had last week. I've vomited and had some diarrhea and I haven't been drinking fluids like I should. I thought I read somewhere that you shouldn't continue Metformin treatment under those conditions. Anybody else read this? Have any experience stopping during the virus? I've been on Met for almost a month now and haven't had any side effects, other than at first fatigue and blood sugar dips, so I don't believe this is at all related to the Met.

What do you think?

myselfsm · 04-09-2009, 10:26 PM

I had not heard that. I stopped taking Met when I had the stomach flu because I couldn't eat and therefore couldn't take my pill.

robin-marie · 04-15-2009, 02:27 AM

i have not heard this suggested before and i cannot imagine why you would stop because of a virus. ask your dr. i personally wouldn't want to stop and have to restart myself.

ssssyd4 · 04-15-2009, 12:41 PM

I stopped because I couldn't keep anything down. When I took the met while I was sick it just made it worse.

jcaruso4316 · 04-15-2009, 06:15 PM

I did stop and restart without a problem. I stayed off of it for two whole days. I would've been having terrible hypoglycemia if I took the drug while sick seeing how I couldn't really eat. I find that when I take the metformin, my blood sugar gets lower if I don't eat every 2-3 hours-- a healthy snack of some sort, if it's not mealtime...

ssssyd4 · 04-16-2009, 10:58 AM

I just noticed that too. At first I thought it was because I was drinking coffee. So, I started drinking decaf. I was still a little shaky. I'm starting to think I am having low blood sugar. I didn't know that was a side effect.

jcaruso4316 · 04-16-2009, 05:28 PM

The hypoglycemia is not necessarily listed as a side effect of metformin, however, after doing some research, I've found that if you take it and are not eating enough, you can experience "hypoglycemia." When I visited my RE he told me do the Atkins Diet and exercise 5 days a week for at least an hour a day. I really tried being good and submitted to my dr, but I found that if I did all of that and didn't carb load or eat enough, I felt horrible. So, I'm doing my own "low-carb" diet, cardio and strength training program as it fits me best. Otherwise, if I overdo it, starve myself and take the metformin, I get shaky and anxious... As soon as I learned I would be taking Metformin I bought a glucometer and check my blood sugar. Sure enough several times I felt that way and my bs was in the low 70s... My body is just sensitive to it. I need to make sure I eat a healthy snack about every 2-3 hours since I've been on the 1500mg. Do what it takes to make your body feel its best!