Janumet

What is Janumet?

Janumet is a drug to help people with type 2 diabetes regulate their blood sugar levels. It comes in a once daily tablet containing two active ingredients: 50 mg sitagliptin and 1000 mg metformin.

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that can be triggered by lifestyle habits. Your risk of developing type 2 diabetes is increased with the following factors:

• Obesity
• Sedentary lifestyle
• High blood pressure
• Prediabetes
• Gestational diabetes during pregnancy

In addition to these, people over the age of 45 and certain ethnicities are at higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. If other people in your family have a history of type 2 diabetes, you may also get it.

How does Janumet work?

The two active ingredients in Janumet are sitagliptin and metformin. These drugs work in different ways to help type 2 diabetes patients control their blood sugar.

Sitagliptin is a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor (DPP-4 inhibitor). DPP-4 inhibitors like sitagliptin increase the level of hormones called incretins in your body that stimulate your pancreas to create insulin. It also limits the output of sugar by your liver.

Metformin is a biguanide. It works by decreasing how much sugar is released into your blood from your liver. By reducing intestinal glucose absorption, and improving glucose uptake and utilisation, metformin prevents your gut from absorbing glucose. This helps your body to stabilise your blood sugar levels more efficiently, preventing more severe symptoms of type 2 diabetes.

What doses of Janumet are there?

Janumet is only available in one dose. Each dose contains 50 mg of sitagliptin and 1000 mg of metformin.

How to take Janumet

Sticking to a treatment plan for type 2 diabetes that includes Janumet is simple:

• Swallow one pill whole with water.
• Don’t cut, crush, or otherwise tamper with your pills.
• Take Janumet with food to avoid an upset stomach.
• Don’t stop taking Janumet without consulting our doctor. Since this is a treatment regimen used to stabilise your blood sugar levels, stopping can cause your blood sugar to increase.
• Don’t drink alcohol in excess while you’re on Janumet. Drinking alcohol while on Janumet can increase your risk of a serious condition called lactic acidosis.

Janumet may cause hypoglycemia if you take it with insulin or a sulphonylurea. Our doctor will adjust your treatment plan to accommodate both drugs if needed.

How long does it take Janumet to work?

You should experience more stable blood sugar levels after a few hours on Janumet. To maintain this stability, you will need to take it everyday as directed by our doctor.

If your blood sugar levels aren’t responding to Janumet as well as you expect, speak with our doctor. There may be another treatment that is more appropriate for you.

What should I do if I make a mistake when taking Janumet?

If you forget to take Janumet, don’t worry. Take it as soon as you remember, unless it’s almost time for your next dose. If it’s almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and continue taking it on schedule. Don’t take a double dose to make up for a missed dose.

Overdosing on Janumet is hard to do. You would have to take many times the prescribed dose to have a negative side effect. If you manage to take too much Janumet, it can cause a condition called lactic acidosis. Lactic acidosis is when you have too much lactic acid circulating in your bloodstream.

The most common symptoms for lactic acidosis include vomiting, stomach pains, muscle cramps, fatigue, difficulty breathing, lowered body temperature, and slowed heartbeat. It’s an extremely dangerous and life threatening condition. As a result, you should seek emergency medical attention immediately if you’ve taken too much Janumet.

Medically reviewed by

Dr Navkaran Singh Sandhu

Clinical Lead

on August 02, 2022.

Meet Navkaran