Beware of these popular drugs that spike your diabetes risk

If you’re at risk of developing, or have already been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, you’d think your doctor would make every effort to avoid prescribing medications that could increase your risk or cause health complications.

But you might be dead wrong.

In spite of the diabetic dangers of certain drugs, many doctors prescribe them, even in cases where their use is entirely inappropriate.

That’s shocking, indeed. But even more shocking is that one of the most common types of drugs, with millions of prescriptions written daily, can contribute to type-2 diabetes risk.

A flood of unnecessary pills

The average American has taken an antibiotic at some point in their life. For certain conditions and situations, it’s standard procedure — no question. And in many instances, they’re life-savers — no question about that either.

But excessive antibiotic use has created a medical monster — the antibiotic resistance crisis, which you can read more about in a piece I sent you last fall. I discussed which contributing factors have gradually led us to this point — a point where the antibiotic-resistant superbug crisis is now responsible for thousands of deaths every year.

And now it’s clear that there’s a second antibiotic crisis on the rise. And it’s driven by two factors.

Factor number one: widespread overuse of antibiotics in seniors.

Researchers from Carolinas HealthCare System in Charlotte, North Carolina analyzed data collected from nearly half a million outpatient visits from more than 1,000 providers and practices. Four conditions in particular were scrutinized:

  • Acute respiratory infection
  • Acute bronchitis
  • Bronchiolitis (bronchial inflammation)
  • Nonsuppurative otitis media (middle ear inflammation)

The prescription rate for antibiotics was highest in acute bronchitis, with more than 700 prescriptions written for every 1,000 visits.

But in general — across all four conditions — doctors wrote more than 400 antibiotic prescriptions for every 1,000 visits. Give or take a few, that’s a total of 180,000 prescriptions.

Ready for the kicker? Prescribing guidelines do not support the use of antibiotics for any of those four conditions.

That means that nationwide, millions of antibiotic prescriptions are being filled yearly even though the drugs will have zero effect on the conditions they’re written for. And this doesn’t even include the various other conditions that are inappropriately treated with antibiotic prescriptions.

Not only is this practice dangerous, it’s an insane waste of money

The risk your doctor won’t mention

Factor number two in this second antibiotic crisis is the little known side effect of antibiotic drugs: diabetes.

And not to mention, the overprescribing of unnecessary antibiotics boosts type 2 diabetes risk in the one patient population most vulnerable to this killer chronic disease: seniors.

In his Integrative Protocol for Defeating Diabetes, Dr. Marc Micozzi shares research detailing how the effects from just a few antibiotic prescriptions could create very big problems when it comes to diabetes.

Researchers collected data on antibiotic prescriptions for more than 170,000 type 2 diabetes patients. They matched these records with those of about one million people without diabetes.

Dr. Micozzi describes the shocking results: “The people who had developed diabetes had been prescribed way more antibiotics. In fact, those who had five or more prescriptions for antibiotics were about 50 percent more likely to get type 2 diabetes compared to those who only had one or no prescriptions.”

If you’re wondering how a medicine designed to kill bacteria ends up wreaking havoc on blood sugar, Dr. Micozzi explains…

“Previous research shows antibiotics harm the normal gut bacteria, which may impair the body’s ability to metabolize sugar and can lead to obesity.

“And this bacteria-harming mechanism may also interfere with the action of the glucose-controlling drug Metformin, which new research shows works by creating a healthy microbiome (healthy bacteria) in your gut.”

The obesity factor is particularly striking because that’s the very thing that drives extreme antibiotic overuse in factory farms, where antibiotics are used to fatten livestock to make them more valuable to meat suppliers.

Clearly, pigs and cows aren’t the only ones that plump up nicely when antibiotics are given in excess…

Other drugs just boost the risks

In addition, keep in mind that antibiotics can cause even more problems when taken with two other common drug types, which also carry their own unique risks for diabetics…

  • Acetaminophen (Tylenol, Nyquil, Robitussin), which can cause false high blood sugar readings
  • Statins (Lipitor, Crestor, Zocor, etc.), which can raise blood sugar, thus increasing diabetes risk

Dr. Micozzi strongly advises against using either of these drugs. And as for antibiotics, he says you should feel free to challenge your doctor if he wants to prescribe one — especially if it’s for an acute upper respiratory condition caused by a virus. Most of the time, these are generally just the common cold or flu, which can be treated at home.

Instead of wasting your time and money or getting a prescription for an antibiotic that won’t do a thing, he recommends getting adequate rest and increasing your intake of fluids (water, fruit juice, tea, and aspal-infused drinks) and electrolytes. Dr. Micozzi also recommends 10,000 of vitamin D per day (and up to 20,000 IU during an illness) to strengthen your immune system.

Dr. Micozzi does caution though, there are exceptions to the “no antibiotics” rule. If you are experiencing serious symptoms such as high fever, profuse sweating, rapid breathing and pulse rate, chest pain, severe congestion, shortness of breath, bluish discoloration of lips and nail beds, and confusion or delirium —  you may have bacterial pneumonia. In which case, you should call your doctor or visit the ER. Antibiotics could save your life in these situations.

So practice common sense and trust your gut. Never take an antibiotic unless you really need it (which is good advice for any drug).

Dr. Micozzi’s Integrative Protocol for Defeating Diabetes contains many more insider tips like to help you prevent this killer disease. To learn more about his newest online learning tool, or to enroll today, click here.

 

SOURCES

https://www.medpagetoday.com/primarycare/uritheflu/70852?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2018-01-31&eun=g1217945d0r&pos=0&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%202018-01-31&utm_term=Daily%20Headlines%20-%20Active%20User%20-%20180%20days
With Aging Comes More Antibiotics for Respiratory Conditions
MedPage Today
January 30, 2018

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/infection-control-and-hospital-epidemiology/article/patient-provider-and-practice-characteristics-associated-with-inappropriate-antimicrobial-prescribing-in-ambulatory-practices/2E40A4927EAD8B0A624B8F169E8F4D39
Patient, Provider, and Practice Characteristics Associated with Inappropriate Antimicrobial Prescribing in Ambulatory Practices
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology
January 30, 2018