A study published in the September 2014 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry found that children and adolescents diagnosed with a psychiatric diagnosis had an increased risk of developing diabetes if they were exposed to antipsychotics.
Using data from the nationwide Danish registers, a group of researchers led by Dr. René Ernst Nielsen, Psychiatry, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark, studied 48,299children and adolescents with psychiatric disorders to document the frequency and possible predictors of type II diabetes, defined by treatment with an oral antidiabetic drug.
The study found that the absolute risk of diabetes in psychiatrically ill youth exposed to antipsychotic medications was approximately 0.72% compared to 0.27% in those not exposed to antipsychotics. Especially female sex and antipsychotic drug exposure increased the risk of developing type II diabetes, while type of psychiatric diagnosis was not related to diabetes development.
Taken together, these data raise further concern about the frequent use of antipsychotics for non-psychotic disorders and off-label conditions, such as disruptive behavior disorders, which should first be treated with non-pharmacologic management options.
I’m at risk for type II having it on both sides and in my immediate family as well as being on a medication that apparently can trigger it or something…but I’ve been losing weight this summer and am trying to watch what I eat and I have a doctor who is aware of this risk now. The doctor at my last treatment place just kind of breezed through once a month and otherwise you met with a nurse practitioner.
So much here. I was overweight as kid and starting to have memories of psychosis as young as three. So looks like if they treated me then higher risk of diabetes. Lost the weight in my late preteens- teens. Wasn’t till I was put on meds put the weight on again. Now recently diagnosed with Type 2. diabetes. I have heard there was a few of the meds that have a notorious link to Diabetes and part of my blood draw on meds have always been my sugar levels.
Also a while ago I found a discussion on a anther forum about the fact the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Jan 2008 published a study looking at the use of Metformin (Glucophage) for the treatment of antipsychotic-induced weight gain: - Metformin is primary used for treatment in type 2 Diabetes. Although wasn’t to much info or able to find a decent link on it to post.
I suffer from diabetes and am on Metformin (Glucophage) The antipsychotics worsen my condition - raising my blood sugar. I am in the process of lowering my antipsychotic, Risperdal with my doctors consent - hopefully this will make the diabetes more manageable - we shall see