Prescription medication · Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor
miglitol
Also sold as Glyset. Miglitol treats type 2 diabetes.
Data updated 2026-05-15
- 923
- FDA reportsRarely reported
- 7
- InteractionsFew interactions
- $1.75
- Generic price (NADAC)
What the data shows
miglitol (Glyset) is a prescription Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor, among the least-reported drugs the FDA tracks (923 FDA reports), with 7 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.
miglitol (Glyset) is a prescription Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor. Miglitol treats type 2 diabetes.
Miglitol (Glyset) helps control blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. It should be used with diet and exercise.
Verify with FDA → · CMS NADAC pricing →
Drug Pricing (NADAC)
Generic Price
$1.75/unit
Generic Available
Yes (1 manufacturer)
Pricing data from NADAC (CMS), effective December 18, 2024. Compare all drug costs →
What it does
Miglitol treats type 2 diabetes.
Common side effects
Gas, Diarrhea, Abdominal pain
Key warnings
No specific warnings noted. Always follow your prescriber's instructions.
The sections below are summarized in plain English from miglitol's FDA-approved prescribing information. They describe what the official label says, and are not personal medical advice.
How It Works
Miglitol slows down the digestion of carbohydrates. This helps to prevent a large rise in blood sugar after you eat. It works in your gut to block certain enzymes.
How to Take It
Take miglitol three times a day at the start of each main meal. The usual starting dose is 25 mg. Your doctor may increase the dose slowly over time to 50 mg or 100 mg three times a day, depending on how well it works for you.
This is a plain-language summary of miglitol's FDA labeling, not individualized dosing advice. Ask a pharmacist or prescriber before changing how you take this medication.
Pregnancy & Breastfeeding
There is not enough information about the safety of miglitol during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Talk to your doctor if you are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breastfeeding.
This is a plain-language summary of miglitol's FDA labeling, not individualized advice. Ask a pharmacist or prescriber about pregnancy or breastfeeding on this medication.
Missed Dose
If you miss a dose, take it with your next meal. Do not double your dose.
This is a plain-language summary of miglitol's FDA labeling, not individualized advice. Ask a pharmacist or prescriber what to do about your specific missed dose.
Storage
Store at room temperature, away from heat and moisture.
Side Effects (from patient reports)
Based on 923 FDA adverse event reports.
Most-reported reactions
Adverse reactions in FAERS for miglitol, by number of reports
- Low blood sugar
Low blood sugar
67 reports
- Abnormal liver function
Abnormal liver function
46 reports
- Reduced appetite
Reduced appetite
39 reports
- Diarrhea
Diarrhea
37 reports
- Kidney problems
Kidney problems
37 reports
- Liver problem
Liver problem
34 reports
- Diabetes
Diabetes
29 reports
- Nausea
Nausea
28 reports
- Interaction with another medicine 26
Interaction with another medicine
26 reports
- Increased level of liver enzyme 25
Increased level of liver enzyme
25 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 miglitol 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 miglitol sits
miglitol has more FDA adverse-event reports than 6% 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 miglitol; the line is the median (50th percentile).
FDA Adverse Event Report Analysis
Detailed analysis of 923 reports from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). Reports span 2004–2025.
Total Reports
923
Reports Mentioning Death
106
11.5% of reports — not proof of cause
Hospitalization Reports
542
Top Indication
Diabetes Mellitus
Gender Distribution
Age Distribution
Most Reported Adverse Reactions (FAERS)
| # | Reaction | Reports |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HYPOGLYCAEMIA | 67 |
| 2 | HEPATIC FUNCTION ABNORMAL | 46 |
| 3 | DECREASED APPETITE | 39 |
| 4 | DIARRHOEA | 37 |
| 5 | RENAL IMPAIRMENT | 37 |
| 6 | LIVER DISORDER | 34 |
| 7 | DIABETES MELLITUS | 29 |
| 8 | NAUSEA | 28 |
| 9 | DRUG INTERACTION | 26 |
| 10 | ALANINE AMINOTRANSFERASE INCREASED | 25 |
| 12 | PLATELET COUNT DECREASED | 25 |
| 13 | DIABETES MELLITUS INADEQUATE CONTROL | 24 |
| 14 | HYPERGLYCAEMIA | 24 |
| 15 | CARDIAC FAILURE | 22 |
| 16 | PNEUMONIA | 22 |
Reactions in Death Reports
Reactions in Hospitalization Reports
Source: FDA FAERS (Adverse Event Reporting System) FDA FAERS (Adverse Event Reporting System) Reports are voluntary and do not establish causation
Known Drug Interactions
The effect of miglitol (100 mg 3 times daily for 7 days) on the pharmacokinetics of a single 1000 mg dose of metformin was investigated in healthy volunteers. Mean AUC and C max values for metformin were 12% to 13% lower when the volunteers were given miglitol as compared with placebo, but this difference was not statistically significant.
Mechanism: Miglitol may slightly lower the amount of metformin that enters your bloodstream, but the change is usually not large enough to matter.
What to do: Your doctor may monitor your blood sugar levels to ensure your treatment is still working as expected.
Other healthy volunteer studies have demonstrated that miglitol may significantly reduce the bioavailability of ranitidine and propranolol by 60% and 40%, respectively.
Mechanism: Miglitol reduces the amount of propranolol that your body absorbs into the blood by about 40%.
What to do: Your doctor may need to adjust your propranolol dose to make sure it still works effectively for your heart or blood pressure.
No effect of miglitol was observed on the pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics of either warfarin or nifedipine.
Mechanism: Miglitol does not change how warfarin is processed by the body or how it works to thin the blood.
What to do: You can safely take these medications together without needing any dose adjustments.
No effect of miglitol was observed on the pharmacokinetics or pharmacodynamics of either warfarin or nifedipine.
Mechanism: Miglitol does not interfere with how nifedipine works or how much of it stays in your system.
What to do: No special precautions or dose changes are required when taking these two drugs together.
Drug Interactions Several studies investigated the possible interaction between miglitol and glyburide. In six healthy volunteers given a single dose of 5 mg glyburide on a background of 6 days treatment with miglitol (50 mg 3 times daily for 4 days followed by 100 mg 3 times daily for 2 days) or placebo, the mean C max and AUC values for glyburide were 17% and 25% lower, respectively, when glyburide was given with miglitol. In a study in diabetic patients in which the effects of adding miglitol 100 mg 3 times daily for 7 days or placebo to a background regimen of 3.5 mg glyburide daily...
Mechanism: Miglitol can lower the amount of glyburide that enters your blood.
What to do: Your doctor may need to check your blood sugar more often and adjust your dose.
This is a plain-language summary of interactions documented in FDA labeling, not individualized advice. Ask a pharmacist or prescriber before combining medications.
Common Questions
What is the maximum dose of miglitol?
Can I take miglitol if I have bowel problems?
How often should my blood sugar be checked?
What should I do if I have a lot of gas or diarrhea?
Can I take miglitol with other diabetes medicines?
Does miglitol cause low blood sugar?
Can I take miglitol with antacids?
What if miglitol does not lower my blood sugar enough?
Can I stop taking miglitol if my blood sugar is normal?
Are there any foods I should avoid while taking miglitol?
What are the common side effects of miglitol?
Does miglitol interact with other medications?
What drug class is miglitol?
Is miglitol safe during pregnancy?
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What the FDA Data Shows for miglitol
The FDA label for miglitol (sold under brand names such as Glyset) classifies it as a prescription-only medication in the Alpha-Glucosidase Inhibitor class. Miglitol treats 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 923 voluntary reports. The database also lists 7 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 $1.75.
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 further shape supply and switching decisions. This page summarizes public FDA data for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, always consult a licensed healthcare provider before starting, stopping, or changing any medication.
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. Always consult a healthcare professional before making medication decisions.
Last updated: December 7, 2021
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 and last refreshed May 2026. See our methodology for per-source dates and refresh cadence. Spot a figure that looks wrong? Report a correction.
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