Prescription medication · Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor
acarbose
Also sold as Precose. Acarbose is used to help control blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
Data updated 2026-05-15
- 3,736
- FDA reportsLightly reported
- 2
- InteractionsFew interactions
- $0.20
- Generic price (NADAC)
What the data shows
acarbose (Precose) is a prescription Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor, among the least-reported drugs the FDA tracks (3,736 FDA reports), with 2 documented drug interactions.
Reporting volume reflects how widely a drug is used and studied, not how dangerous it is, a FAERS report documents a temporal association, never proof of cause.
acarbose (Precose) is a prescription Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor. Acarbose is used to help control blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
Acarbose is a medicine that helps lower blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes. It works best when used with diet and exercise.
Verify with FDA → · CMS NADAC pricing →
Drug Pricing (NADAC)
Generic Price
$0.20/unit
Generic Available
Yes (3 manufacturers)
Pricing data from NADAC (CMS), effective December 18, 2024. Compare all drug costs →
What it does
Acarbose is used to help control blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
Common side effects
Gas, Diarrhea, Abdominal pain
Key warnings
You should not take acarbose if you have diabetic ketoacidosis or cirrhosis.
The sections below are summarized in plain English from acarbose's FDA-approved prescribing information. They describe what the official label says, and are not personal medical advice.
How It Works
Acarbose slows down the digestion of carbohydrates (sugars and starches) in your body. It does this by blocking certain enzymes in your small intestine that break down carbs. This helps to prevent a sharp rise in blood sugar after meals.
Side Effects (from patient reports)
Based on 3,736 FDA adverse event reports.
Most-reported reactions
Adverse reactions in FAERS for acarbose, by number of reports
- Hypoglycaemia
Hypoglycaemia
269 reports
- Nausea
Nausea
203 reports
- Blood Glucose Increased
Blood Glucose Increased
200 reports
- Dizziness
Dizziness
160 reports
- Diarrhoea
Diarrhoea
147 reports
- Drug Interaction
Drug Interaction
142 reports
- Vomiting
Vomiting
142 reports
- Acute Kidney Injury
Acute Kidney Injury
139 reports
- Fall
Fall
125 reports
- Asthenia
Asthenia
112 reports
What this shows Bars show how often each reaction was reported, not how likely it is to happen, a report records a temporal association, never proof that the drug caused it.
Reports over time
Adverse-event reports filed for acarbose each year to the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS).
Year-to-year volume tracks usage, prescribing, and scrutiny, not a change in per-patient risk. Source: FDA FAERS.
Where acarbose sits
acarbose has more FDA adverse-event reports than 21% of the drugs FAERS tracks. A high position reflects how widely a drug is used and watched, not how dangerous it is.
Percentile across all drugs PlainMeds tracks by FAERS report volume. The dot is acarbose; the line is the median (50th percentile).
FDA Adverse Event Report Analysis
Detailed analysis of 3,736 reports from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Reports span 2004–2025.
Total Reports
3,736
Reports Mentioning Death
310
8.3% of reports — not proof of cause
Hospitalization Reports
2,037
Top Indication
Diabetes Mellitus
Gender Distribution
Age Distribution
Most Reported Adverse Reactions (FAERS)
| # | Reaction | Reports |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HYPOGLYCAEMIA | 269 |
| 2 | NAUSEA | 203 |
| 3 | BLOOD GLUCOSE INCREASED | 200 |
| 4 | DIZZINESS | 160 |
| 5 | DIARRHOEA | 147 |
| 6 | DRUG INTERACTION | 142 |
| 7 | VOMITING | 142 |
| 8 | ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY | 139 |
| 11 | FALL | 125 |
| 12 | ASTHENIA | 112 |
| 13 | LACTIC ACIDOSIS | 107 |
| 14 | DYSPNOEA | 103 |
| 15 | DIABETES MELLITUS INADEQUATE CONTROL | 99 |
| 16 | PNEUMONIA | 99 |
| 17 | WEIGHT DECREASED | 94 |
Reactions in Death Reports
Reactions in Hospitalization Reports
Source: FDA FAERS (Adverse Event Reporting System) Reports are voluntary and do not establish causation
Serious Warnings
You should not take acarbose if you have diabetic ketoacidosis or cirrhosis. Also, do not take it if you have inflammatory bowel disease, colon ulcers, or any bowel obstruction. This medicine can cause liver problems in some people. Tell your doctor right away if you develop symptoms like yellowing of the skin or eyes.
Known Drug Interactions
These drugs include the thiazides and other diuretics, corticosteroids, phenothiazines, thyroid products, estrogens, oral contraceptives, phenytoin, nicotinic acid, sympathomimetics, calcium channel-blocking drugs, and isoniazid.
Mechanism: Phenytoin can make it harder to control your blood sugar, which may affect how well acarbose works.
Digoxin concentrations decreased Acarbose, activated charcoal, albuterol, antacids, certain cancer chemotherapy or radiation therapy, cholestyramine, colestipol, extenatide, kaolin-pectin, meals high in bran, metoclopramide, miglitol, neomycin, penicillamine, phenytoin, rifampin, St.
Mechanism: Acarbose can lower the amount of digoxin that gets into your blood by interfering with its absorption.
This is a plain-language summary of FDA-label interaction records and does not provide individual medication-combination directions.
Common Questions
What should I do if I experience severe gas or diarrhea?
Can I take acarbose with other diabetes medications?
Will acarbose cause low blood sugar?
What happens if my blood sugar is low?
Are there foods I should avoid while taking acarbose?
How long does it take for acarbose to start working?
Can acarbose cause weight gain?
What if I forget to take Acarbose with a meal?
Does Acarbose interact with other medications?
How will I know if the medicine is working?
What are the common side effects of acarbose?
Does acarbose interact with other medications?
What drug class is acarbose?
What pregnancy or breastfeeding source fields are listed for acarbose?
Related Medications in Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor
Other drugs grouped near acarbose - same-class peers and common alternatives.
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canagliflozin
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Invokana is a medicine used with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
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colesevelam
Welchol
Colesevelam is a medicine that helps lower bad cholesterol (LDL-C) and control blood sugar in adults.
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dapagliflozin
Farxiga
Dapagliflozin (Farxiga) helps lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
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Compare beyond drug class
Nationwide peers by FAERS volume & death-report share
Two PlainMeds-derived comparison paths for acarbose: nearest FDA FAERS report volume and nearest death-report share among drugs with at least 1,000 logged reports, excluding same-class neighbors listed above. Counts reflect reporting volume, not proven individual harm.
Similar FAERS report volume
Nearest drugs by total FAERS reports. This record: 3,736.
Similar death-report share
Nearest drugs by FAERS death-report share. This record: 8.30%.
- methimazole Δ 0.00 pts · 7,411 reports · Anti-Thyroid Agent 8.30%death share
- lithium Δ 0.00 pts · 24,367 reports · Mood Stabilizer 8.29%death share
- levomilnacipran Δ 0.01 pts · 1,858 reports · Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor (SNRI) 8.29%death share
- leflunomide Δ 0.02 pts · 102,095 reports · Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drug (DMARD) 8.28%death share
Medication Guides
Understanding Drug Interactions
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Generic vs Brand Name Drugs
FDA requirements, cost savings, and when the difference matters
Narrow Therapeutic Index Drugs
FDA bioequivalence and label-record context for narrow therapeutic index medicines
Common Drug Interactions
Dangerous medication combinations and how to protect yourself
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What the FDA Data Shows for acarbose
The FDA label for acarbose (sold under brand names such as Precose) classifies it as a prescription-only medication in the Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor class. Acarbose is used to help control blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. Official labeling lists 3 commonly reported side effects, including Gas, Diarrhea, Abdominal pain.
Post-market surveillance from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) captures real-world experience. For this drug, FAERS contains 3,736 voluntary reports. The database also lists 2 documented drug interactions derived from FDA labeling, with the top-flagged interaction rated minor severity. NADAC pricing from CMS shows a generic unit cost of $0.20.
Report counts do not establish causation, a FAERS entry documents a temporal association, not proof that the drug produced the outcome. Widely prescribed medications naturally accumulate more reports than niche therapies, so raw totals must be interpreted alongside total exposure. Shortage status, recall history, and patent information are separate source-record fields. This page is a public FDA/CMS registry and does not provide medical, treatment, substitution, or medication-change directions.
Data Sources
Drug labeling: FDA Drug Labels (SPL/DailyMed). Adverse events: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Pricing: CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC).
FAERS reports are voluntary and do not establish causation. Drug interactions are derived from FDA labeling and clinical references. This registry does not provide medication decisions.
Last updated: August 12, 2024
PlainMeds is rendered directly from FDA openFDA/FAERS extracts, DailyMed labels, and CMS drug-pricing files, no number is typed in by an editor. FAERS counts, recalls, shortages, and price figures on this page are queried live from those federal extracts. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-05-15. Primary sources: openFDA / FAERS, DailyMed and CMS Part B ASP.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Data currency: FDA FAERS adverse-event reports through 2025, CMS NADAC acquisition-cost pricing effective December 2024, compiled from the source snapshot dated . See our methodology for per-source dates and refresh cadence. Spot a figure that looks wrong? Report a data issue.
All federal data sources used on this page
- FDA Orange Book - approved drug products with therapeutic equivalence. accessdata.fda.gov/cder/ob
- FDA DailyMed - NIH-hosted drug labeling for FDA-approved meds. dailymed.nlm.nih.gov
- FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) - post-marketing safety surveillance. fda.gov/drugs/faers
- NLM RxNorm - standardized clinical drug nomenclature. nlm.nih.gov/research/umls/rxnorm
- CMS Medicare Part B Drug Average Sales Price Files - federal drug pricing data. cms.gov/medicare/part-b-drugs/asp
- FDA Drug Shortages Database - current and resolved drug shortage tracking. accessdata.fda.gov/drugshortages