Newswise — Researchers from the University of Adelaide could be closer to discovering a better way to use metformin, a common type 2 diabetes medication. Metformin, which has been a cornerstone in diabetes treatment since the 1960s, is typically taken with meals to reduce gastrointestinal side effects but new research is suggesting patients could see improved results if it’s taken before meals. Dr Cong Xie postdoctoral research fellow in the Centre of Research Excellence in Translating Nutritional Science to Good Health, at Adelaide Medical School, worked with Associate Professor Tongzhi Wu and a team which studied the gastrointestinal effects of the drug on 16 people living with type 2 diabetes who were already using it to treat the condition.
Their findings were published in the journal Diabetologia and are now being used in e-learning by the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (one of the largest international platforms for diabetes research and clinical practice). “Our results demonstrate administering metformin 30 to 60 minutes before a meal reduces plasma glucose levels while increasing the secretion of the incretin hormone glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) and insulin levels,” Dr Xie said. “GLP-1 is a hormone secreted from the gut, which exhibits several actions, including the suppression of appetite, stimulation of insulin, slowing of gastric emptying and the subsequent glucose absorption in the intestine, all of which are beneficial for the control.
