Metformin

Don't ask people for anecdotal advice around drugs. The bias is absurd. Just look up the summary of product characteristics or better yet talk to a doctor and you'll even get a blow by blow of how common they are.

That said if it doesn't give you the runs and you aren't trying for a kid it's probably the closest thing to exercise in a pill I'm existence.

Berberine is a natural over the counter alternative that is equally as effective to lower your blood sugar. (Studies and research available online that shows this same finding, I am not making this up).

I tried Metformin before switching to Berberine (I am not a diabetic), did it because I kept reading about longevity benefits. Problem was that since I was not a diabetic, it was hard to find a dose that did not lower my blood sugar too much and didn't make me dizzy and since I failed, it was easier to switch to Berberine.

If your goal is to improve your blood sugar then I suggest looking into improving insulin sensitivity via fasting, exercise, improved sleep, lowered stress and if you are up for it, switching to a whole food plant based diet (low carb high in vegetables to start and then open it up) this is the approach that I have seen work for others in my family.

Last but not least, get a CGM, fantastic. I use the freestyle libre 3.

See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6351883/ for an important part of the story.

The short of it is that Metformin does seem to induce good metabolic changes but it also reduces the physiological response to exercise which is also great for your metabolism, function, mental health, etc.

I personally prefer the non-RX alternative Berberine as it has less risk of lactic acidosis in the liver. I use 1.5G/day and it helped in conjunction with a hybrid of healthy-keto + paleo and intermittent fasting to reduce insulin resistance for me. But that is just my preference and I take about 50 other supplements and that would confound any studies.

I see a lot of praise for Metformin on the comments here. I did a quick search and it seems that the only long term side effect listed is B12 deficiency. I also saw a comment talking about lactic acidosis in the liver.

Are there any other known short and long term side effects? Did anyone have a bad experience while taking it?

I learned if you're a long term user there's a protocol to follow to wean youself off it or there may be some short term side effects.

Take it as prescribed. My grandma was taking it before bed with the rest of her pills which isn't the best time to bottom out your blood sugar. She was riding a roller coaster of highs and lows until my mother took over filling her pill case.

I've been taking metformin for years alongside HMB (hydroxymethylbutyrate) naively thinking that it could prevent the muscle loss associated with it.

I think they should put it in the water in my country.

I use a glucose monitor in order to force myself to eat healthy, and I noticed that I don't get glucose spikes anymore when I'm on metformin. Good medicine. Also look into acarbose!