When to take Byetta?

The website and the video that came with the starter kit the doctor gave me say I can eat immediately after the shot, or up to an hour after it. I have read comments from quite a few people saying that they eat right after the injection. However my doctor insits that this is not a good idea at all. He says, he dosen't care what the website or the video says. My doctor says that since the Byetta is injected under the skin, not intravenously, it's effects are not immediate. Therefore he says that I should wait 15 minutes after my injection before eating "to give the byetta's effects a chance to kick in".  Makes sense to me, particularly for the appetite suppressing  quality it's supposed to have. I can't believe that would happen instantly after taking the shot. Yet I still see many who say they eat right afterward, so not sure who is right.

Thanks Warren

Hi Hilary,

Well, typically metformin is prescribed to be taken "with a meal" and actos or any of the sulfonylaureas are presribed to be taken half an hour "before a meal".  The reason for actos prior to a meal is simply so it can start stimulating insulin production to ameliorate any spike in blood sugar you have due to your meal.  The metformin which takes longer to work and simply is there to break down your insulin "resistence" can be taken with the meal so that 1) it doesnt upset your stomach and 2) you get potentially better absorbtion of the drug. 

Now the big problem comes when you take Byetta in that it has an action that delays the emptying of the stomach contents to smooth out your blood sugar spikes.  If your meds get caught up in this mechanism, they aren't doing what they're supposed to do WHEN they're supposed to do it!  So if at all possible (and timing is not always easy if you have a busy lifestyle) take those meds before you eat and before or at the same time you do the injection. (before is better).  This will get the oral meds into your blood stream before Byetta has a chance to trap them.  Hope this helps.

 Warren