DrM
#223
Pretty nifty for something that is barely absorbed systemically.
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scta123
#224
Can acarbose lower fasting blood glucose levels? My fasting glucose is quite low, and this morning I went with my bike to get my heart pumping and I never get hypoglycemic, but this morning I had to stop, sit down and I think I passed out for a second or two. Later I was ok, cycled home with a bit less enthusiastic speed and had breakfastā¦ I read that hypoglycemia starts at 70 mg/dl (3.9 mmol/L), my fasting sugar is between 4.5 and 5 mmol/Lā¦ any experience with acarbose lowering fasted blood glucose?
They did a nice AMA which simplified that podcast for the masses. I believe it was AMA #40
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I am a T2D. When diagnosed I had an A1C of 7.8
Im now at around an A1C of 5.
However, I do noticed that I still spike beyond healthy ranges whenever I consume carbohydrates, even the smallest amounts. I start Acarbose tomorrow to help control those spikes which are often just as dangerous as high A1C levels.
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tananth
#227
It seems unlikely that Acarbose would have any effect on fasting blood sugar, whether at rest or while excercising. However, exercise will temporarily lower blood sugar as muscle cells use up glucose reserves and start absorbing more from the blood. Normally the liver will immediately respond by generating more glucose, so with my CGM, I typically see a barely perceptible dip followed by a sustained but small rise in blood sugar as I do my daily 10 minutes of intensive exercise. The rise lasts over an hour before my fasting blood sugar returns to normal levels.
I recommend you get a CGM (the freestyle libre 3 in USA is just $74.99 for 28 days, with coupon, if your insurance wonāt cover you because your are not insulin dependent) to verify what is going on. I find if I excercise right after waking without drinking a glass of water, I feel faint, but my blood sugar readings are fine : I suspect dehydration and/or loss of blood pressure.
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scta123
#228
Thx. As it was a single event I wont make it a big deal. My husband (MD) said that probably it was just an vasovagal event as I was probably anxious about my blood test that morning and body for a second or two was not able to sustain blood pressure and heartbeatā¦
He also said that it is almost impossible for acarbose to lower glucose into hypoglycemic territory, even if in diabetic and obese people it does indeed lower fasting glucose levels as well.
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CTStan
#229
Could you please tell me where you get it for that price? My self pay at Amazon pharmacy is considerably higher.
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tananth
#230
I started with the Libre 3 free trial coupon which gives you one sensor free (once per person, at any pharmacy, I used Costco Pharmacy, which has the lowest list price of $123 for 2 sensors). I discovered by accident that the same coupon entitles you subsequently (for 12 months) to get 2 sensors for no more than a $74.99 copay, if you have commercial insurance (excludes Medicare, Medicaid) even if your insurance provides no coverage (in my case because I am not insulin dependent). If you already used the free trial coupon or are past the 12 month period of that coupon, you can call them to get another coupon just for the $74.99 copay limit (per 2 sensors) : Freestyle Libre with Private Insurance
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FWIW:
My own experience is, Acarbose does not lower fasting blood sugar but certainly produces too much gastric distress for my diet. I have switched to Canaglafozin
Yes, the Canaglafozin is a little pricy even from India. I bought it through Jagdish Nikose only because he has been an extremely reliable supplier for me, though he is not necessarily the cheapest. At the time that I bought it was $8 for 10 tablets of Bayer/Zydus/Ivocana.
What I received:
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scta123
#232
still a great price. In my pharmacy 30x100mg costs 67 EUR 
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Dr_Spin
#233
Iām getting good results with āOrganic Skullcapā tea (Scutellaria laterifolia) which is another skullcap (different from those already posted above). Next to the days I take a cup or two of this tea, Iām waking up at perfect mark of 80mg/dL of blood glucose! Iām taking it with meals as, in theory, the mechanism of action is similar to Acarbose (as pointed in paper posted above).
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Dstunz
#234
Hi! Do you take chinese skull cap in lieu of acarbose? I am currently taking acarbose with each meal along with digestive enzymes, and then I found out the digestive enzymes make it harder for the body to absorb the acarbose. Iām wondering if I switch to Chinese skull cap, can I get the same benefits as acarbose while still being able to take digestive enzymes without impacting absorption. Thanks!
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Iām very close to be metabolically healthy as without the āOrganic Skullcapā tea (Scutellaria laterifolia) my average fasting glucose was around 95 mg/dL. So, not bad. [Achieved with exercise, eating only real food, most of carbs coming from fruit, 2g protein/kgWeight from meat, some āsaladā veggies, good sleep, etc. + {Rapamyin with Grapefruit every 10 days} + 5 days of water only fasting 3 times a year]
But when I take 1 cup of the tea with meals, then the following day I wake up with perfect marks for glucose: 80 mg/dL. So Iām pretty sure the tea is helping. I have never used Acarbose, I decided to go for Skullcap first and seems to be working (even if this species is not exactly the same skullcap from the paper posted above, which suggest similar action of this plant as that of Acarbose).
So, in short, in theory, Skullkap has very similar mechanisms of action of Acarbose, and it seems to be working for me.
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I think your argument about the ITP using sick mice is false as they have a normal life expectancy similar to other mice. When treated with drugs, they live even longer than normal mice. So if the āsickā mice live longer than āhealthyā mice Iād say itās even more reason to believe the ITP results.
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zazim
#237
I am such a fan of the five day water fasts you are doing. I attribute them to fixing my insulin resistance. In 2011 I was 98 mg. The next record I have is 2017 at 104. I have records after that date and they were always high. 106, 104 and as high as 120 in 2021. My primary physician was never very concerned. Once I started doing five day water fasts, they finally started dropping. My last test in 2022 was 79. Unfortunately, he never tested my fasting insulin. It was 2.4 ulU in 2022 but by then I had fixed the problem.
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Almonds. Who knew? As good as acarbose without the gas.
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But comes with ~400kcal additional calories 
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The energy from almonds is very inefficiently absorbed which explains the loss in waist circumference and body fat %.
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shc
#241
Wouldnāt any protein and fiber ingestion before meals not lead to this? Or is there something special about almonds?
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