The Wall Street Journal posted an article yesterday (you can only read the first part of the article here; the rest requires subscription) about Avandia and how its side effects have created some stir. In May of 2007, the New England Journal of Medicine reported high risk of heart attacks linked to Avandia, a medication to reduce blood sugar in diabetics. The American Diabetes Association and its European counterpart have told physicians not to continue to use the drug. The sad thing here is that clear back in the year 2000, internist Mary Money of Hagerstown, Maryland, raised concerns about congestive heart failure that she observed in her patients who were taking the drug Avandia. She contacted the company, Glaxo Smith Kline as well as the FDA regarding her concerns. She says the FDA was unresponsive, and Glaxo said Doctor Money’s theories were unsubstantiated and she was misinterpreting journal articles to support her case. The following month, two Smith Kline executives wrote to the hospital chief of staff, wanting him to stop Dr. Money from talking to other doctors about her concerns.
How this applies to you: this article points out the intimidation tactics sometimes used by big business. When a drug worth $2.5 billion in sales in 2006 was being questioned as valid treatment by physicians, big pharma should have paid careful attention, if the health of patients was truly their objective. Healthy alternatives to drugs should be your first choice of treatment. They are available; they work with the physiology of the body rather than try to control the body. For a generalized article on diabetes and how to treat it, check out this earlier post: http://www.stangardnermd.com/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=67
My doctor says I can get all the vitamins and minerals I need from my food. What is your opinion on this?
I used to say the same thing to my patients, back in the days before I studied healthy alternatives. It is the party line of allopathic medicine, although that is starting to change. Here's the bottom line, and I'll follow up with some info on what allopaths are now doing:
2 responses so far ↓
1 Barb // Nov 21, 2008 at 8:53 am
I was given Avandia to use in 2000. Within three months my triglycerides went from the 400’s up to 1300! I found a different Dr who took me off Avandia and put me on Actos. He also had me take 2 grams of fish oil. My levels were down to the 300’s within a couple of months.
2 Dr. Stan Gardner // Nov 26, 2008 at 6:45 pm
Barb, Unless you have familial hypertriglyceridemia, those levels are still too high. Look seriously at your total carbohydrate intake, reduce it to 60-100 grams per day, and see if the levels will not come down further. You may have to reduce or stop taking Actos as the blood sugars reduce. Seriously read the material on diabetes in this site.
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