Can Diarrhea Be Caused By Diabetes Medications?

Diabetes can affect the digestive system, leading to damage and symptoms such as diarrhea. Metformin, a diabetes medication, is effective for treating type 2 diabetes, but up to 10% of patients may experience side effects in the gastrointestinal system, including diarrhea. Diarrhea can also be due to metformin, a diabetes medication. Chronic diarrhea and weight loss may occur in patients with type 2 diabetes who take metformin, even after several years of stable dosing. Diarrhea can occur when the dose of metformin is raised too quickly or if the dose is taken too high. It is unclear why metformin causes diarrhea, but most side effects resolve after the first few days of taking metformin. Diarrhea is the most commonly reported symptom of adverse gastrointestinal effects, and metformin can lead to malabsorptive diarrhea ranging from 10 to 53 in T2DM patients. Metformin is known to cause diarrhea and nausea, among other gastrointestinal issues. Tips for managing metformin side effects include consulting a healthcare provider if you experience diarrhea, an upset stomach, or constipation. Metformin, statins, and other drugs used for diabetes and related conditions can affect how the intestines work, and various drugs, including those commonly used to treat diabetes, may also cause chronic diarrhea symptoms.

Which antidiabetic causes diarrhea?

Metformin is in medicines many people take for type 2 diabetes. It helps lower your blood glucose and makes your body more sensitive to insulin. But it can also cause nausea and diarrhea when you first start taking it or when you raise the dose. Those side effects usually go away in a few weeks.

Diarrhea is a possible side effect of other diabetes drugs, too, including:

• Acarbose (Precose)
• Colesevelam (Welchol), and it can also cause constipation
• Linagliptin (Tradjenta)
• Miglitol (Glyset)
• Saxagliptin (Onglyza)
• Sitagliptin (Januvia)

Is diarrhea a side effect of diabetes medication?

Diarrhea is a common diabetes symptom. There are several causes of diabetes-related diarrhea, including metformin, a diabetes medication. Diabetes-related autonomic neuropathy, nerve damage caused by diabetes, is another cause.

How are diabetes and diarrhea related?. Diabetes can cause diarrhea, along with several other gastrointestinal (digestive) problems. Diarrhea is a common symptom of diabetes. It’s more common in people who have had diabetes for a long time.

Sometimes, people with diabetes-related diarrhea also experience fecal (bowel) incontinence, especially at night. That’s because nerve damage (neuropathy) due to diabetes affects the anal sphincter. The anal sphincter is the muscle that opens and closes to allow poop to exit your body.

What is diabetes?. Diabetes mellitus is a condition that happens when your body can’t produce or use the hormone insulin. Insulin allows blood sugar (glucose) into your cells so your body can use it as energy. If you have diabetes, your cells don’t respond to insulin as they should. Your cells don’t absorb the glucose, so the sugar builds up in your blood.

What does diabetic diarrhea look like?

Diabetic diarrhea is typically watery, voluminous, and explosive, with or without steatorrhea. Although the symptoms of diabetic diarrhea may relatively straightforward, patients may accept these symptoms and fail to disclose these symptoms.

. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2019 Jul 25.

Published in final edited form as: Endocrinol Metab Clin North Am. 2013 Sep 24;42:809–832. doi: 10. 1016/j. ecl. 2013. 07. 006.

INTRODUCTION. When practitioners think about complications of diabetes, they may focus on the microvascular, macrovascular, and peripheral neuropathic complications that are known to be associated with the disease. Although gastrointestinal problems are extremely common, with upper gastrointestinal symptoms alone affecting more than 40% of the general population, 1 the incidence of certain gastrointestinal symptoms is more common in diabetes, and health care professionals should be aware of these associations. Gastrointestinal symptoms have not only a detrimental effect on quality of life but also significant medical consequences. Poor control of diabetes can affect any segment of the gut from the mouth to the rectum. However, unfamiliarity with these symptoms can delay treatment or referrals to appropriate specialists. The purpose of this review is to highlight the incidence, diagnosis, and treatment of some of the more common gastrointestinal complications of diabetes.

What foods trigger metformin diarrhea?

• Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of clear fluids throughout the day and at least 1 cup of liquid every time you have diarrhea.
• Eat small meals, including some salty foods such as soup or sports drinks and potassium-rich foods such as bananas.
• Avoid foods that may worsen symptoms, such as fried or greasy foods, dairy, caffeine, and alcohol, as well as fruits or vegetables that cause gas, such as broccoli and prunes.

For people who have chronic diarrhea after taking metformin for a long time, one option may be to ask your healthcare provider if you should stop taking metformin for two weeks to see if the diarrhea goes away. If the diarrhea does not stop, you may need further tests to find the cause.

Summary. Diarrhea is a common side effect of metformin, which is frequently taken as a first-line treatment for type 2 diabetes. In addition to diarrhea, other gastrointestinal issues such as nausea, vomiting, gas, stomach discomfort, and indigestion may also occur.

How long does diabetic diarrhea last?

How long does diabetic diarrhea last? People with diabetes have a higher risk of chronic or persistent diarrhea. It may last from several weeks to several months, but treatment can help manage it.

Diabetes can affect any part of the digestive system. Over time, persistently high blood sugar levels can lead to damage that results in a range of symptoms, including diarrhea in some cases.

It’s unclear why this happens. Nerve damage, medication, and other factors may play a role.

About 20% of people with diabetes experience diarrhea. Those with diabetes are more likely to have diarrhea than those without diabetes.

How do I stop diabetic diarrhea?

Abstract. Idiopathic diarrhea is a common complication of diabetes mellitus. It occurs frequently, but not exclusively, in patients with poorly controlled insulin-dependent diabetes who also have evidence of diabetic peripheral and autonomic neuropathy. Associated steatorrhea is common and does not necessarily imply a concomitant gastrointestinal disease. The diarrhea is often intermittent; it may alternate with periods of normal bowel movements, or with constipation. It is typically painless, and occurs during the day as well as at night and may be associated with fecal incontinence. Multiple pathogenic mechanisms have been implicated, autonomic neuropathy, bacterial overgrowth, and pancreatic exocrine insufficiency being the most important underlying aberrations. However, diabetic diarrhea does not have a uniform and unequivocal pathogenesis. The diagnosis depends on a judicious clinical assessment accompanied by a stepwise laboratory evaluation, which allows the differentiation idiopathic diabetic diarrhea from the many other causes of diarrhea that can occur in diabetic and nondiabetic patients. The management can be difficult but many therapies, including antibiotics to eradicate bacterial overgrowth, as well as antidiarrheal agents, oral and topical clonidine, and somatostatin analogues may be effective in controlling diabetic diarrhea.

Octreotide is cost-effective therapy in diabetic diarrhea.

Michaels PE, Cameron RB. Michaels PE, et al. Arch Intern Med. 1991 Dec;151:2469, 2473. doi: 10. 1001/archinte. 151. 12. 2469. Arch Intern Med. 1991. PMID: 1801818 No abstract available.

Should I stop taking metformin if I have diarrhea?

If your diarrhea is severe, your medical provider may suggest taking anti-diarrheal medication. They may also recommend stopping metformin for a short period of time to see if the diarrhea resolves.

Other Metformin Side Effects. Common side effects of metformin are short-term and mild.

• Headache
• Nausea and vomiting
• Weight loss
• Bloating
• Gas
• Bad (metallic) taste in mouth

Can high sugar give you diarrhea?

Sugar. Sugars stimulate the gut to put out water and electrolytes, which loosen bowel movements. If you ingest a lot of sugar, you may develop diarrhea. One of the biggest offenders is fructose, which is found naturally in fruits (such as peaches, pears, cherries, and apples) or added to foods and drinks, such as applesauce, soda, and juice beverages. Many people who ingest more than 40 to 80 grams of fructose per day will get diarrhea. Another offender: artificial sweeteners such as sorbitol, mannitol, and xylitol (found in sugar-free gum, candy, and medications).

Dairy foods. These contain lactose, which some people have a hard time digesting. Watch out for cheese, milk, and ice cream, among many other products.

FODMAPs. Fructose, artificial sweeteners, and lactose are part a group of poorly digested sugars that can cause diarrhea, known as FODMAPs (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols). Other sources of FODMAPs include wheat, rye, onions, garlic, legumes (chickpeas, lentils, beans), honey, pistachios, cashews, asparagus, and artichokes.

What foods cause diarrhea with metformin?

What foods trigger metformin side effects?. metformin side effects are typically mild and can include nausea, upset stomach, or diarrhea. Foods that may trigger or increase those symptoms are best not to eat—like high-fat, sugary, or fried foods. These often contain trans fat, are served in larger portions at restaurants, and have tons of added sodium.

A study published in 2014 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition analyzed the association between fried food consumption and type 2 diabetes. Researchers found eating fried foods increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes—the exact disease metformin is FDA approved to treat.

Another food to mention, because there’s been some chatter suggesting it may interfere with metformin, is grapefruit. While animal studies suggest grapefruit and grapefruit juice may interact with metformin, human studies have not shown the same interaction. Ultimately, the FDA doesn’t mention grapefruit as one of the foods to avoid while taking metformin.

What does metformin poop look like?

If you take an oral tablet form of metformin, you may sometimes notice something in your stool (poop) that looks like the tablet. This is normal and should not cause concern.

Do not chew, cut, or crush extended-release metformin tablets, they should be swallowed whole.

Metformin can cause ovulation (release of an egg from your ovary) if you have not gone through menopause, even if you do not have regular periods. This can increase your chance of getting pregnant.

How long do metformin poops last?

Diarrhea is the most common side effect of metformin, but it typically gets better in a few weeks. The reason metformin causes diarrhea isn’t exactly clear. But it’s well-known that the immediate-release version of metformin causes diarrhea more frequently than the extended-release form.