Should You Think About an SGLT2 Drug?

By David Spero There are new drugs in diabetes town. The SGLT2 inhibitors work in the kidneys. They cause glucose to leave the body through the urine. Presto — blood glucose comes down. Could there be any disadvantages to this approach? The kidneys work with glucose all the time. They have several ways of keeping glucose levels up. Kidneys make glucose by breaking down the starch called glycogen. They create new glucose from chemicals like lactate and glycerol. Kidney parts called nephrons absorb glucose from the urine and put it back into the blood. This is all good for most people, because it preserves glucose, our body's main fuel. But what if there's too much glucose in your blood already? For people with diabetes, the kidney's "reabsorbing" glucose can be a big reason for high blood glucose levels. Here's how it works. When blood passes through the kidney, glucose, along with waste products, is filtered through structures in the nephron known as
Source: Diabetes Self-Management - Category: Diabetes Authors: Source Type: blogs