Drugs for Diabetes
Drugs for Diabetes
There are several types of drugs for diabetes that currently can be used to treat diabetes mellitus, a disease where the body experiences abnormally high levels of glucose in the blood, depending on the form of the disease and the patient’s situation, while new diabetic drugs are continuously being researched, developed, introduced, and undergoing clinical trials.
Drugs for Type I Diabetes
Individuals who are afflicted with type I diabetes mellitus where the body fails to produce sufficient insulin are required to receive regular insulin injections to compensation for the shortage, but type II diabetics who typically acquire the disease later in life, where the body’s cells become resistant to insulin, may be treated with a wide array of other drugs for diabetes and often do not require insulin injections unless the disease has been poorly controlled and reaches an advanced stage.
Some drugs for diabetes are designed to increase sensitivity to insulin and improve cellular uptake, some stimulate the pancreas to produce more insulin, and others decrease the glucose absorption rate in the gastrointestinal tract by a variety of mechanisms.
Drugs for Type II Diabetes
Specific anti-diabetic pharmaceutical agents commonly taken to treat type II diabetes include metformin/Glucophage, which is an insulin sensitizer and typically the first-line drug of choice, and thiazolidinediones (TZDs) such as Avandia and Actos which enhance cell metabolism of glucose.
Also, second-generation sulfonylureas like glipizide/Glucotrol, glyburide, and Amaryl can be effective in many cases of diabetes due to their ability to stimulate insulin secretion, while meglitinides such as Starlix and Prandin actually help the pancreas to produce a greater volume of insulin.
Among the numerous hypoglycemic drugs available on the market today, diabetics may additionally take Victoza or exenatide which are glucagon-like peptide (GLP) agonists that cause pancreatic beta cells to release more insulin, miglitol/Glyset or Glucobay alpha-glucosidase inhibitors that slow intestinal starch digestion to reduce glucose levels in the bloodstream, and incretin mimetics which serve to also increase the secretion of insulin.
Diabetics may be prescribed one or multiple drugs for diabetes to treat their diabetes, usually combined with an exercise program and a modified healthy diet, in an attempt to reduce and manage their blood sugar levels and prevent progression of the disease which can lead to many serious health problems.
Incoming search terms:
- diabetes mellitus
- picture for diabetes
- new drugs for diabetes
- new medications diabetes treatment
- how many drugs are being researched for diabetes?
- drugs of diabetes mellitus
- drugs in diabetes mellitus
- drugs for diabetes mellitus
- drugs available in market for diabetes
- types of drugs