Mounjaro and alcohol

[Fluffyknickers]

Any advice or experiences really appreciated. DT1, insulin and mounjaro user, both GP prescribed. My blood sugars are excellent and I am 95%+ in range. Would love to know if any fellow users have tried alcohol. I am going on holiday in a month and would love a glass of wine. Has anyone tried it?

I was type 2 and not on medication (now reversed). In terms of alcohol I tended to stick to spirits with diet mixers but only occasionally. For me it really had no affect on my blood sugars but appreciate that everyone is different.

My type 1 friend does drink (wine/cocktails etc etc) and is on insulin but nothing else. I presume she just allows for it in her insulin? Hopefully someone with better knowledge comes along.

My aunt drinks vodka and soda - not excessively!

I've drunk almost every day of Mounjaro

It's fine - I drink gin and diet lemonade

Sugary drinks you'd have more of a problem. I get diarrhoea if I eat a chocolate bar or something

But protein, alcohol, veg = no problem

Sorry I'm going to sound like a right alkie now but you need much less alcohol on Mounjaro as your calorie intake is less

So I have a double gin and I'm DONE, literally can't face more and feel already squiffy

I haven’t really drank on it but I went up to 10 mg and in the second week I had two glasses of wine and a gin and tonic. I had awful stomach ache and diarrhoea for two days so I’m not risking it again

Is your gp the only person looking after you for your diabetes? Do you have access to a diabetes specialist nurse? (by which I mean someone who just does diabetes, not a gp practice nurse with an interest in diabetes). They would be the best person to talk to for advice specific to you. I’m a bit 😮 that your gp has prescribed mounjaro to a person with type 1 diabetes. I’d say that was diabetologist territory. There are very little studies of this drug in people with type 1 diabetes, hence why I’d say ideally a specialist should be overseeing your care. Did they talk about dose adjustment of your insulins? Did they explain the theoretical risk of diabetic ketoacidosis when taking this medication as a person with type 1 diabetes? And the signs of DKA and what you should do if you have any?

On the practical level, In general you need to keep in mind that both alcohol and mounjaro increase the risk of hypoglycaemia, as they can both reduce the release of glucose from stores your body holds after alcohol, so you need to really keep an eye on your levels after drinking, and consider eating a slow release carb snack before bed to reduce the risk of a night hypo. Is the place you are going going to be very hot? Will you be doing lists of activity? Holidays can really mess up your control. Heat, extra activity (walking for sightseeing, or lots of swimming), and then possibly eating less carby meals because it’s so hot will all potentially increase the risk of hypos. I’m sure you know all of this, but I’m just repeating it to be super sure.

If you aren’t already using one, a flash meter (like freestyle libre) or cgms would give you a good picture of what effect the alcohol was having.

I hope you have a fantastic, problem free, slightly boozy holiday.

Thank you all so much for your really helpful comments. I will absolutely speak with my GP who is a diabetes specialist. Just super looking forward to our holiday, which will be in a hot country, so will be extra cautious. That’s if u even pluck up the courage to have a glass of wine. I do wear a libre monitor so should be able to watch for potential highs and lows. Thanks again, cheers (hopefully,)