{"id":50803,"date":"2025-04-25T21:36:47","date_gmt":"2025-04-26T01:36:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/"},"modified":"2026-02-04T11:53:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T16:53:26","slug":"diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes","status":"publish","type":"mayo","link":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/","title":{"rendered":"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"container mx-auto   wordpress-block wordpress- core-\">\n<p>Lifestyle choices, including eating a healthy diet, exercising and staying at a healthy weight, are key to managing type 2 diabetes. But you also might need to take medication to keep your blood sugar, also called glucose, at a healthy level. Sometimes one medication is enough. In other cases, taking several medications works better.<\/p>\n<p>The list of medications for type 2 diabetes is long and can be confusing. Take time to learn about these medicines &mdash; how they&#8217;re taken, what they do and what side effects they may cause. That can help you get ready to talk to your health care provider about diabetes treatment choices that are right for you.<\/p>\n<p>Several classes of type 2 diabetes medicines exist. Each class of medicine works in a different way to lower blood sugar. A medication may work by:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Causing the pancreas to make and release more insulin.<\/li>\n<li>Limiting the liver&#8217;s ability to make and release sugar.<\/li>\n<li>Blocking the action of enzymes in the intestines that break down carbohydrates, slowing how quickly cells take in carbohydrates.<\/li>\n<li>Improving cells&#8217; sensitivity to insulin.<\/li>\n<li>Limiting the kidneys&#8217; ability to take in sugar, which increases the amount of sugar that leaves the body in urine.<\/li>\n<li>Slowing how quickly food moves through the stomach.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Each class of medicine has one or more medications. Some of these medications are taken by mouth, while others must be taken as a shot.<\/p>\n<p>Below is a list of common diabetes medications. Other medications are available too. Ask your health care provider about your choices and the pros and cons of each.<\/p>\n<h4>Medications you take by mouth<\/h4>\n<p><strong>Meglitinides<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Repaglinide<\/li>\n<li>Nateglinide<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Trigger the release of insulin from the pancreas<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Work quickly<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Blood sugar levels drop too low &mdash; a condition called hypoglycemia<\/li>\n<li>Gain de poids<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Sulfonylureas<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Glipizide (Glucotrol XL)<\/li>\n<li>Glimepiride (Amaryl)<\/li>\n<li>Glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Trigger the release of insulin from the pancreas<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Low cost<\/li>\n<li>Effective in lowering blood sugar<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Blood sugar levels drop too low<\/li>\n<li>Gain de poids<\/li>\n<li>Skin rash<\/li>\n<li>Nausea or vomiting if you drink alcohol<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Dipeptidyl-peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitors<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Saxagliptin (Onglyza)<\/li>\n<li>Sitagliptin (Januvia)<\/li>\n<li>Linagliptin (Tradjenta)<\/li>\n<li>Alogliptin (Nesina)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cause the release of insulin when blood sugar is rising<\/li>\n<li>Limit the liver&#8217;s ability to release glucose<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Don&#8217;t cause weight gain<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t cause blood sugar levels to drop too low when used alone or with metformin<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Upper respiratory tract infection<\/li>\n<li>Sore throat<\/li>\n<li>Headache<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Biguanides<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Metformin (Fortamet, Glumetza, others)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Limit the liver&#8217;s ability to release sugar<\/li>\n<li>Improve cells&#8217; sensitivity to insulin<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Very effective<\/li>\n<li>May lead to minor weight loss<\/li>\n<li>Low cost<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Nausea<\/li>\n<li>Stomach pain<\/li>\n<li>Diarrhea<\/li>\n<li>Very rarely, the harmful buildup of lactic acid &mdash; a condition called lactic acidosis &mdash;in people with kidney failure or liver failure<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Thiazolidinediones<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Rosiglitazone (Avandia)<\/li>\n<li>Pioglitazone (Actos)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Improve cells&#8217; sensitivity to insulin<\/li>\n<li>Limit the liver&#8217;s ability to make and release sugar<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>May slightly increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, the &#8220;good&#8221; cholesterol<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gain de poids<\/li>\n<li>Fluid retention<\/li>\n<li>Increased risk of broken bones<\/li>\n<li>Increased risk of heart problems, including heart failure<\/li>\n<li>Possible increased risk of bladder cancer with pioglitazone<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>People with liver problems or a history of heart failure shouldn&#8217;t take this kind of diabetes medicine.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Acarbose<\/li>\n<li>Miglitol (Glyset)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Slow the body&#8217;s ability to breakdown starches and some sugars<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Don&#8217;t cause weight gain<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t cause blood sugar levels to drop too low unless you take them with insulin or a sulfonylurea<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gas<\/li>\n<li>Stomach pain<\/li>\n<li>Diarrhea<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Sodium-glucose transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Canagliflozin (Invokana)<\/li>\n<li>Dapagliflozin (Farxiga)<\/li>\n<li>Empagliflozin (Jardiance)<\/li>\n<li>Ertugliflozin (Steglatro)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Limit the kidneys&#8217; ability to take in sugar, which increases the amount of sugar that leaves the body in urine<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>May lead to weight loss<\/li>\n<li>May lower blood pressure\n    <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Urinary tract infections<\/li>\n<li>Yeast infections<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Bile acid sequestrants<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Colesevelam (Welchol)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Lower cholesterol and have a small effect in lowering blood sugar when used with other diabetes medications<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Likely safe for people with liver problems<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gas<\/li>\n<li>Constipation<\/li>\n<li>Indigestion<\/li>\n<li>Rise in blood fats called triglycerides<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>Medications you take as a shot<\/h4>\n<p><strong>Amylin mimetics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Pramlintide (Symlin)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Help regulate blood sugar<\/li>\n<li>Slow food moving through the stomach<\/li>\n<li>Used with insulin shots<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>May decrease hunger<\/li>\n<li>May lead to minor weight loss<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Blood sugar levels drop too low<\/li>\n<li>Nausea<\/li>\n<li>Abdominal pain<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Incretin mimetic (GLP-1 receptor agonists)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Medications<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Dulaglutide (Trulicity)<\/li>\n<li>Exenatide (Byetta, Bydureon Bcise)<\/li>\n<li>Liraglutide (Saxenda, Victoza)<\/li>\n<li>Lixisenatide (Adlyxin)<\/li>\n<li>Semaglutide (Ozempic, Rybelsus, Wegovy)<\/li>\n<li>Tirzepatide (Mounjaro), a similar kind of medicine called a dual-acting GLP-1\/GIP agonist.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Action<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cause the release of insulin as blood sugar levels are rising<\/li>\n<li>May be used with metformin, basal insulin or a sulfonylurea<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Advantages<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>May decrease hunger<\/li>\n<li>May lead to weight loss<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possible side effects<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Nausea<\/li>\n<li>Vomiting<\/li>\n<li>Diarrhea<\/li>\n<li>Abdominal pain<\/li>\n<li>Increased risk of inflamed pancreas &mdash; a condition called pancreatitis<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>No one diabetes treatment is best for everyone. What works for one person may not work for another. Your health care provider can explain how one medication or multiple medications may fit into your diabetes treatment plan. Sometimes combining medicines may increase the effectiveness of each individual medicine to lower blood sugar. Talk to your provider about the pros and cons of specific diabetes medications for you.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Confused by all the treatment choices for type 2 diabetes? Use this guide to better understand the medicines available to help control blood sugar.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","tags":[1686,1685,1682,1684],"class_list":["post-50803","mayo","type-mayo","status-publish","hentry","tag-anatomical-structure","tag-condition","tag-person-group-concept","tag-theme-of-focus","content_type-articles"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes - Hancock Health<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes - Hancock Health\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Confused by all the treatment choices for type 2 diabetes? Use this guide to better understand the medicines available to help control blood sugar.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hancock Health\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-04T16:53:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Dur\u00e9e de lecture estim\u00e9e\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/mayo-health-library\\\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/mayo-health-library\\\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes - Hancock Health\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-26T01:36:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-04T16:53:26+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/mayo-health-library\\\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"fr-FR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/mayo-health-library\\\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/mayo-health-library\\\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Mayo Articles\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/mayo-health-library\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"Hancock Health\",\"description\":\"Explore a health network built around you.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hancockhealth.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"fr-FR\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes - Hancock Health","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/","og_locale":"fr_FR","og_type":"article","og_title":"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes - Hancock Health","og_description":"Confused by all the treatment choices for type 2 diabetes? Use this guide to better understand the medicines available to help control blood sugar.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/","og_site_name":"Hancock Health","article_modified_time":"2026-02-04T16:53:26+00:00","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Dur\u00e9e de lecture estim\u00e9e":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/","name":"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes - Hancock Health","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/#website"},"datePublished":"2025-04-26T01:36:47+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-04T16:53:26+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"fr-FR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/diabetes-treatment-medications-for-type-2-diabetes\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Mayo Articles","item":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/mayo-health-library\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Diabetes treatment: Medications for type 2 diabetes"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/","name":"Sant\u00e9 Hancock","description":"Explore a health network built around you.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"fr-FR"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/mayo\/50803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/mayo"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/mayo"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hancockhealth.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}