Thanks for finding this Liane.
It seems, that besides all the risks, that their are some benefits to canagliflozin. From the article:
From the perspective of diabetes, endocrinologist Alan J. Garber, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, biochemistry and molecular biology and molecular and cellular biology at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, who was not part of the FDA advisory panel, said the new drug provides a novel treatment choice.
"Canagliflozin provides another therapeutic option for patients with type 2 diabetes. This option is beneficial since it's not dependent on endogenous insulin secretion, has no proclivity for excess risk of hypoglycemia, and is generally associated with modest weight reduction,"
I take this to mean that for some patients, this drug may provide some benefit. I just wonder, since it is making your body do something that is not really natural, that there could be unintended consequences that are not yet known; not to mention increased risk of genital fungal infections and cardiovascular risks. It also seems that all of the benefits of canagliflozin are also benefits of Afrezza, but Afrezza's action is much closer to what happens in a non-diabetic individual.
I also wonder that since canagliflozin makes the patient excrete glucose, the body is being deprived of the energy that it needs. Isn't the reason for hyperglycemia because the body's cells cannot utilize glucose without insulin. So if blood glucose is rising, it is because the body is not consuming enough glucose and also because hepatic glucose production has not been turned off. If this is the case, without insulin, isn't there a danger that the body starts burning fatty acids for energy causing ketoacidosis?
