High Blood Sugar And The Damage It Can Cause

High Blood Sugar And The Damage It Can Cause

When diabetes is out of control, it means your blood sugar (blood glucose) is too high. High blood sugar may not make you feel sick. But even if you have no symptoms, controlling your blood sugar is important for your health. That's because high blood sugar can lead to serious problems over time. When your blood sugar is not controlled, too much sugar stays in your blood for a long time. That can damage blood vessels and nerves. This damage can cause:

• Kidney disease
• Blindness
• Nerve damage
• Foot problems
• Heart disease

JANUVIA is not approved to treat serious problems that may be caused by high blood sugar.
JANUVIA (jah-NEW-vee-ah) is a once-daily prescription pill that, along with diet and exercise, helps lower blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes.
JANUVIA should not be used in patients with type 1 diabetes or with diabetic ketoacidosis (increased ketones in the blood or urine). If you have had pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas), it is not known if you have a higher chance of getting it while taking JANUVIA.

What you should know

Over many years, high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) can lead to serious problems. Kidney disease can lead to kidney failure and the need for dialysis. Blood vessel damage in the eyes can lead to blindness. Nerve damage in the feet can lead to the need for amputation. And heart disease can lead to death. Heart disease is, in fact, the number 1 cause of death in people with diabetes.
You may not want to think about these possibilities—no one really wants to. But the good news is that you can help avoid these problems by taking good care of yourself. This includes taking steps to lower your blood sugar level.

Look for additional information here...

• What Should My Blood Sugar Be?
• Know Your A1C
• Learn More About JANUVIA
• ABCs of Diabetes

Selected Risk Information About JANUVIA

Serious side effects can happen in people who take JANUVIA, including pancreatitis, which may be severe and lead to death. Before you start taking JANUVIA, tell your doctor if you've ever had pancreatitis. Stop taking JANUVIA and call your doctor right away if you have pain in your stomach area (abdomen) that is severe and will not go away. The pain may be felt going from your abdomen through to your back. The pain may happen with or without vomiting. These may be symptoms of pancreatitis.
Do not take JANUVIA if you are allergic to any of its ingredients, including sitagliptin. Symptoms of serious allergic reactions to JANUVIA, including rash, hives, and swelling of the face, lips, tongue, and throat that may cause difficulty breathing or swallowing, can occur. If you have any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction, stop taking JANUVIA and call your doctor right away.
Kidney problems, sometimes requiring dialysis, have been reported.
If you take JANUVIA with another medicine that can cause low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), such as a sulfonylurea or insulin, your risk of getting low blood sugar is higher. The dose of your sulfonylurea medicine or insulin may need to be lowered while you use JANUVIA. Signs and symptoms of low blood sugar may include headache, drowsiness, weakness, dizziness, confusion, irritability, hunger, fast heart beat, sweating, and feeling jittery.
Your doctor may do blood tests before and during treatment with JANUVIA to see how well your kidneys are working. Based on these results, your doctor may change your dose of JANUVIA. The most common side effects of JANUVIA are upper respiratory tract infection, stuffy or runny nose and sore throat, and headache.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Please read the Medication Guide for JANUVIA® (sitagliptin) tablets and discuss it with your doctor. The physician Prescribing Information also is available.