Benfotiamine & Metformin - Should They Be Used Together?
Hello Dr. Rosedale,
I have reactive hypoglycemia that I treat with both your diet and Metformin. Upon searching this forum I found that you suggest Benfotiamine because it converts glucose into ribose, as opposed to lactic acid.
Please clarify how these two medications differ in terms of
influence on insulin:
1. You say that Benfotiamine is converted to ribose intracellulary
- does that mean Benfotiamine requires insulin to transport the
glucose into the cell, at which point Benfotiamine converts glucose
into ribose? In that case, is it true that Benfotiamine does not
help keep insulin levels down, but instead just works to reduce
AGES?
2. I was under the impression that Metformin converts glucose into
lactic acid so that insulin isn't raised to usher it into the cell.
Is this correct?
3. Should these supplements be used together, or is that
unnecessary?
I'm basically hoping to find out if both Benfotiamine and Metformin work to keep insulin levels low, while also working to convert sugar to less harmful substances. I'd like to switch from Metformin to Benfotiamine upon your recommendation- is there a recommended dosage, or would that be dependent upon severity of disease?
Thank you for your expertise. I wish I could clone you. :)
Keyboard shortcuts
Generic
| ? | Show this help |
|---|---|
| ESC | Blurs the current field |
Comment Form
| r | Focus the comment reply box |
|---|---|
| ^ + ↩ | Submit the comment |
You can use Command ⌘ instead of Control ^ on Mac
Support Staff 1 Posted by Fiona on 03 Oct, 2012 06:37 PM
We wish we could clone him too! Thank you for allowing your questions to be public, as so many more people learn through reading them. Dr. Ron is not available right this moment, however I know that Metformin is the only diabetic drug he is ok with people taking and that he does recommend if people can afford to, to switch it with Benfotiamine for the reasons that you mentioned.
2 Posted by Rachel on 08 Oct, 2012 09:46 AM
Thanks for this! I will buy the Benfotiamine and see how that goes. Is there a recommended dosage you're aware of, or should I do a little Google research? (Thought I'd try my luck with you guys first since there's trust established.)
Support Staff 3 Posted by Fiona on 08 Oct, 2012 10:49 AM
Benfotiamine works over time. I will check with Dr. Ron, but thinking transitioning out the Metformin as you introduce the Benfotiamine, but this is a question for Dr. Ron who is not here right now.