Diabetes Medication Dangers
Diabetes is a disorder affecting the body's ability to regulate sugar in the blood and other tissues. In a healthy individual, blood sugar and sugar in body tissues is kept in a balance. High blood sugar usually means low sugar in the brain, muscles and other organs. Like many bodily processes that must be kept in balance, sugar levels are regulated with a pair of hormones. Insulin lowers blood sugar by inducing other tissues to absorb it, and glucagon raises blood sugar.
In a non-diabetic, insulin and glucagon keep the flow of sugar from the blood to the organs at a steady trickle. People need sugar at all times. For example, the brain uses up to 20% of the energy taken in as food, and needs this energy constantly. However, unless on a steady IV drip, people get food energy in bursts, which we like to call meals and snacks. The body ensures that this intermittent flow of calories is converted into a steady stream of usable sugar.
However diabetics do not process sugar properly. A type I diabetic does not produce insulin. Therefore, unless insulin is injected at regular intervals, sugar stays in the blood and the person could starve or go into a coma from lack of sugar to the brain. Fortunately, regular injections of insulin do largely solve the problem. A type II diabetic faces a different situation. While still producing insulin, the body does not respond well to it. So, sugar stays in the blood, and injections of insulin will not really help.
Medications such as Actos seek to solve this issue. Actos, known technically as pioglitazoline hydrochloride, increases the body's response to insulin, thereby lessening the effects of diabetes. However, it is far from a magic bullet. Because virtually all non-blood cells have a resistance to insulin, a good diabetes medication has to affect virtually the entire body to be effective. Giving a medication such carte blanche permission can be dangerous.
This is because pioglitazone hydrochloride is known to have a few adverse effects. Some Actos side effects include a swelling of fatty tissue or problems with muscular tissue. At first glance, this might sound benign, but keep in mind that all people have a layer of fat under the skin. This means that the entire body can seem to be swelling and uncomfortable. Muscle problems might seem annoying but harmless until one remembers that the heart is a muscle. More than a few instances of Actos litigation have occurred due to Actos's implications in heart failure.
Another of the Actos side effects is an increased risk of bladder cancer. The urinary tract often receives a larger than optimal dose of any medication used in the body, due to its eliminatory role. Actos is no exception, and exposure to pioglitazone hydrochloride for more than one year has been known to be a potential cause of bladder cancer. Actos litigation has been one way for those who have experienced this to come to some closure in the situation.
In a non-diabetic, insulin and glucagon keep the flow of sugar from the blood to the organs at a steady trickle. People need sugar at all times. For example, the brain uses up to 20% of the energy taken in as food, and needs this energy constantly. However, unless on a steady IV drip, people get food energy in bursts, which we like to call meals and snacks. The body ensures that this intermittent flow of calories is converted into a steady stream of usable sugar.
However diabetics do not process sugar properly. A type I diabetic does not produce insulin. Therefore, unless insulin is injected at regular intervals, sugar stays in the blood and the person could starve or go into a coma from lack of sugar to the brain. Fortunately, regular injections of insulin do largely solve the problem. A type II diabetic faces a different situation. While still producing insulin, the body does not respond well to it. So, sugar stays in the blood, and injections of insulin will not really help.
Medications such as Actos seek to solve this issue. Actos, known technically as pioglitazoline hydrochloride, increases the body's response to insulin, thereby lessening the effects of diabetes. However, it is far from a magic bullet. Because virtually all non-blood cells have a resistance to insulin, a good diabetes medication has to affect virtually the entire body to be effective. Giving a medication such carte blanche permission can be dangerous.
This is because pioglitazone hydrochloride is known to have a few adverse effects. Some Actos side effects include a swelling of fatty tissue or problems with muscular tissue. At first glance, this might sound benign, but keep in mind that all people have a layer of fat under the skin. This means that the entire body can seem to be swelling and uncomfortable. Muscle problems might seem annoying but harmless until one remembers that the heart is a muscle. More than a few instances of Actos litigation have occurred due to Actos's implications in heart failure.
Another of the Actos side effects is an increased risk of bladder cancer. The urinary tract often receives a larger than optimal dose of any medication used in the body, due to its eliminatory role. Actos is no exception, and exposure to pioglitazone hydrochloride for more than one year has been known to be a potential cause of bladder cancer. Actos litigation has been one way for those who have experienced this to come to some closure in the situation.
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