Eating right and exercising may not be enough to control your blood sugar. Your doctor may ask you to take medicines as well. There are different types of diabetes medicines. Each one works in a different way to control blood sugar.

Not every medicine is right for every type 2 diabetes patient. For complete information, including potential side effects and drug interactions, talk with your doctor or pharmacist.

Over time, you may need more than one kind of medicine to manage your diabetes.

It may take a while before the medicine takes effect. Even when your diabetes is under control, you may need to continue taking your medicine for a long time.

Thiazolidinediones (TZDs)

• Help your body use its own insulin better. This helps more sugar get into your cells.
• May take a few weeks or more to work.

Biguanides

• Target the liver and prevent it from releasing too much sugar into the blood.

Sulfonylureas

• Help the pancreas release more insulin throughout the day. This helps more sugar get into your cells.

Meglitinides

• Help the pancreas release more insulin during meals.
• Should be taken no more than 30 minutes before meals.

Starch blockers (alpha-glucosidase inhibitors)

• Slow the breakdown of some foods such as bread, pasta, or table sugar.
• Taken with the first bite of each main meal. This helps prevent your blood sugar from going too high after meals.

DPP-4 inhibitors (dipeptidyl peptidase-4)

• Help the pancreas release more insulin after meals.
• Help control the amount of sugar released from the liver.

Insulin

• If pills alone do not work, your doctor may have you take insulin to help lower blood sugar. Almost all forms of insulin must be taken by shots into the skin with a short needle. There are different kinds of insulin that work at different speeds.

Other diabetes medicines taken as shots:

• Amylin agonists help keep your blood sugar under control after you eat.
• Incretin mimetics help your pancreas release more insulin.

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