Last week, I recommended the book, Drug Muggers by Pharmacist Suzy Cohen. Drug muggers is a phrase author Cohen uses to describe prescription medications (and lifestyle habits) that can rob your body of necessary vitamins and minerals.

To combat the drug muggers in our lives, many of us should be taking supplements to replenish what has been depleted by our medicines.

In my first blog posting on drug muggers, I wrote about statins or cholesterol lowering medicines and the things in your body that are lost with their use. You can read that blog HERE.

This week, since November is American Diabetes Month, I thought we should discuss diabetes medication drug muggers and what supplements you should take if you are on diabetes medicine.

Diabetes medicines include:

• Glyburide (Diabeta, Glynase, Micronase)
• Metformin (Glucophage, Glucophage XR, Glumetza, Fortamet, Riomet)
• Metformin and Sitagliptin (Janumet)
• Tolazamide (Tolinase)
• Glipizide (Glucotrol)

Some of the side effects that can occur with diabetes medicines when certain nutrients are in short supply:

• Fatigue
• Weakness and muscle cramps
• Memory loss
• Heart disease
• Frequent infections

Diabetes medications can leave you deficient in:

• Coenzyme Q 10–necessary for the proper functioning of our muscles, including the heart. Decreased levels can lead to muscle weakness and pain, as well as problems with the heart.
• Vitamin B6–(pyridoxine) needed for normal nerve and heart function.
• Vitamin B12-(also known as methylcobalamin) necessary for energy, sleep, as well as for our nervous systems.
• Folic Acid (also known as Vitamin B9 or 5-MTHF/5-methyltetrahydrofolate or Folate in its natural form)–Folic acid is necessary to make red blood cells to transport oxygen throughout the body. Folic acid is also needed to make DNA, our genetic code, and is thus vital to prevent birth defects. Folate and the other B Vitamins also play an important role in heart function.

We carry a line of supplements in the pharmacy known as Replenish. Replenish has a supplement, Oral Hypoglycemic Complete, specifically for people who are taking diabetes medications. For less than 50 cents a day, you can take this supplement to help restore the vitamins and minerals that have been drug mugged by your diabetes medicines.

During the month of November, we will be giving away four copies of Drug Muggers. So please stop in the store and fill out a raffle ticket. There is a ton of wonderful information in this book about many classes of prescription drugs–more information than I can possibly summarize in my blogs.

There is also an end cap in the pharmacy featuring Statinzyme and the vitamins and supplements needed if you are taking diabetes medications.

As always, please check with your doctor and let them know about any and all vitamins and supplements you add to your daily regimen of medications.