Per recent studies does beta blocker Atenolol raise the blood sugar level in diabetes type II?
My husband has been on Atenolol for years now & was diagnosed 3 years ago with type II diabetes. He has been taking Metformin, watching his diet & exercising. He has not been able to get his blood sugar to an acceptable level. I just read about a recent study done on beta blockers causing insulin resistance in the body specifically Atenolol. The study is recommending switching to Carvedilol which does not have an adverse effect on insulin resistance. Does anyone have any information or thoughts on this?
Hi Kathi,
I did not find anything about the correlation between Atenolol and higher blood sugars, but that does not mean one does not exist. You can read about Atenolol (Tenromin-generic name) here in the drugs database. There is a precautionary statement about letting your doctor know if you take diabetic drugs, namely glipizide, glyburide, and insulin. You can read that here.
There are quite a few articles about Carvedilol. Apparently Carvedilol is seeing more success for people with acute heart ailments like congestive heart failure over previously prescribed drugs like Lopressor. You can read about that here. There is also a new study that Carvedilol won't cause diabetics to gain weight like other beta blockers do. You can read that article here.
Online sites like Health Central are great for getting the information you need to ask all the right questions, but they can not take the place of your doctor's solid medical advice.
Let us know how you and your husband are doing and what the doctor says.
Take care and stay in touch!
Vicki M
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