Get the Best Price on Diabetes Medication like Tradjenta, Onglyza, and Invokana

The Types of Diabetes and Diabetes Medications

The terminology surrounding diabetes can get a little confusing, but as any diabetes patient knows, the type of disease they have dictates the type of diabetes medication they need.

Here’s a quick primer.

What’s the Role of Insulin in the Human Body?

Your pancreas produces insulin to help regulate your blood sugar levels. Typically, your blood sugar spikes after a glucose-heavy meal – and, for many, this is completely fine.

Why?

Insulin immediately starts working to route the excess glucose to places in your body where it’s useful – think: sending glucose to your muscles for fuel.

For people who don’t have enough insulin, glucose simply remains in the bloodstream instead of being diverted elsewhere. Over time, this can result in many issues, and even be life-threatening.

What is Type 1 Diabetes?

Patients with type 1 diabetes don’t produce any (or very little) insulin. In this chronic condition, the pancreas simply doesn’t make any.

As noted above, insulin is a critical ingredient in the normal pathway between eating food and producing energy. Type 1 diabetics usually need to supplement with insulin or other diabetes meds and supplies long-term. Unfortunately, there is no cure.

Type 1 diabetes is usually genetic and tends to be associated with younger people. However, it’s also possible for adults to develop type 1 diabetes.

Because the primary therapy for type 1 diabetes involves direct insulin supplementation, medications like Tradjenta, Invokana, and Onglyza are best for people with type 2 diabetes.

What is Type 2 Diabetes?

Simply put: With type 2 diabetes, patients’ bodies don’t manage blood sugar or its existing supply of insulin very well.

As a result, over time, type 2 diabetes patients will become insulin resistant, and require more insulin to manage their blood glucose. Over time, type 2 diabetes patients will probably require medication to optimize insulin use.

There are some risk factors for type 2 diabetes, such as family history and age. There are also some ways that some individuals can manage type 2 diabetes with lifestyle modifications, but often, diabetes medications will be required.

Among the most popular medications for type 2 diabetes are Tradjenta, Onglyza, and Invokana.

Tradjenta

Tradjenta (linagliptin) is a type of diabetes medication that helps the human pancreas produce more insulin.

For Tradjenta to help a patient, their pancreas must produce a little insulin already – so Tradjenta will not work for people managing type 1 diabetes.

Tradjenta’s active ingredient, linagliptin, is a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor that, as the term suggests, stops the activity of the DPP-4 enzyme.

Usually, the DPP-4 enzyme breaks down hormones that trigger insulin production. They exist as a regulatory negative feedback cycle to ensure your body doesn’t produce too much insulin. However, people with type 2 diabetes don’t have this problem, so this feedback mechanism isn’t helpful.

By inhibiting DPP-4, Tradjenta helps prolong the pancreas’s production of insulin. Therefore, insulin can continue managing the patient’s blood sugar levels.

Tradjenta is taken once daily.

How Much Does Tradjenta Cost?

In America, one 30-count bottle of Tradjenta starts at around $566.00 for the lowest dose. This breaks down to about $19.00 per daily pill.

Americans can also order brand-name Tradjenta from our international and online Canadian pharmacy for around $4.30 per pill, or approximately $388.00 for a three-month supply (up to 77% savings).

Onglyza

Onglyza (saxagliptin) is, like Tradjenta, a DPP-4 inhibitor. Patients take Onglyza once per day to control blood sugar and symptoms relating to their type 2 diabetes.

Typically, Onglyza is not the first-choice treatment for diabetes. Instead, physicians will likely recommend a patient try another medication, such as Tradjenta.

There are a few reasons for this.

First, Onglyza typically doesn’t reduce blood sugar as much as other DPP-4 inhibitors, and Onglyza can increase a patient’s risk of heart failure. For this reason, doctors will likely want patients taking Onglyza to monitor their heart metrics closely while on this medication.

Even though Onglyza has its potential downsides, it can be an excellent option for people who can’t tolerate Tradjenta or related drugs. Diabetes is a chronic and very personalized disorder, so patients need to be able to find a diabetes medication that works for their unique circumstances.

If Onglyza is the medication you need, you need to be able to find it for an affordable price.

Unfortunately, Onglyza, like many other diabetes medications, can be exceedingly expensive in the United States.

How Much Does Onglyza Cost?

In America, a 30-count supply of Onglyza starts at around $531.00, or nearly $18.00 per pill.

Through NorthWestPharmacy.com, American patients can buy 28 pills of Onglyza for about $130.00, instead – or approximately $4.60 per pill (up to 74% savings).

Invokana

Invokana (canagliflozin) is a diabetes medication that can help patients manage their blood sugar levels and their risk of stroke or heart attack.

More than that, Invokana can also reduce the risk of kidney failure or lessening kidney function. As some other type 2 diabetes meds can increase the risk of heart failure or have adverse effects on kidney function, Invokana can be an attractive choice.

This doesn’t mean that Invokana is for everyone. For example, only adults, or people over 18, should take Invokana. In addition, if you’re experiencing diabetic ketoacidosis, a dangerous condition that occurs when your blood sugar is too high for too long, Invokana is probably not the right choice for you.

In addition, as Invokana is relatively new, there is no generic yet available for Invokana’s active ingredient, canagliflozin.

This can create an environment where the costs for Invokana are consistently high, making this drug inaccessible for many diabetes patients.

How Much Does Invokana Cost?

Thirty tablets, or a one-month supply, of Invokana retail in America for around $604.00, or just over $20.00 per pill.

American patients seeking lower prices should check out an international or online Canadian pharmacy. Through NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can buy 30 tablets of Invokana starting at around $180.00, or $6.00 per pill (up to 70% savings).

FAQs About Diabetes and Diabetes Medications

Now that we’ve covered the basics about Invokana, Tradjenta, and Onglyza, it might be helpful to have a little more context about how and why they are used.

What Are the Symptoms of Diabetes?

Diabetes is a wide-ranging disease that can present with many different symptoms. Some of the most common include:

In addition, each type of diabetes has its own slew of symptoms. Type 1 diabetes patients often experience stomach pains, vomiting, and nausea.

Patients with type 2 diabetes often do not present with any symptoms at all, which can make diagnosing it difficult (or an unfortunate surprise).

What Are the Side Effects of These Diabetes Medications?

While these diabetes medications provide clear benefits to many patients, they can also cause some adverse effects (or unwanted side effects), just like any drug.

For Tradjenta, Onglyza, and Invokana, some of the more common side effects include:

In some cases, diabetes medications can cause liver damage or even increase the patient’s risk of heart failure. Make sure your doctor knows your family history, any symptoms you experience, and any other medications you’re taking to help them determine the best and safest medication for you.

Some of these effects are more severe or chronic than others. Typically, you will experience side effects as you get used to the drug. Then, the side effects will taper off with time.

Are There Other Diabetes Medications?

Yes, there are other diabetes medications besides Invokana, Onglyza, and Tradjenta. These are three of the most popular (and some of the most expensive) drugs, with some of the steepest savings available to Americans who buy their meds from Canada.

Two other similar type 2 diabetes medications are:

Why Are Diabetes Medications So Expensive?

You may notice that none of these diabetes medications are inexpensive. American diabetics often pay $500.00 – $600.00 per medication for just one month of medication. This doesn’t even factor in other lifestyle changes or medications they require.

In Canada and internationally, these diabetes medications are far cheaper. Why is that the case?

First, in America, government prescription medication price regulation is illegal. In other countries, the government steps in to ensure that manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies cannot price their medications unreasonably high. In the United States, drug companies can price their drugs as they wish.

Secondly, very few of these drugs are available in generic form. This means there is little competition to keep the brand-name diabetes medications affordable.

Fortunately, American patients don’t have to settle for sky-high prices.

It’s Time to Buy Diabetes Medications Online for Less

Finding the right diabetes medication for you (or your loved one) can be a matter of life and death. While type 2 diabetes symptoms can be managed for a time with lifestyle modifications, at some point, high-quality medication will become a necessity.

For people in this situation, it isn’t fair to price that medication entirely out of their financial grasp. Diabetics shouldn’t be forced to choose between their health and financial security, yet $600.00-a-month chronic diabetes medications force them to do just that!

NorthWestPharmacy.com was founded to support Americans with low-cost options for their required brand-name prescription medications.

Here, we provide updated educational materials for commonly-prescribed medications, simple and seamless ordering processes, and access to pharmacists M-F if you’d like to ask questions about your prescriptions.

Why do we go above and beyond in this way?

We know managing your healthcare can be stressful. Our goal is to reduce stress surrounding prescription meds by shipping low-cost medications directly to your front door. If you have questions about our offerings, you can also speak directly with a friendly representative through our seven-day-a-week customer service desk. (You can even place an order over the phone!)

Our relentless dedication to a outstanding customer experience has paid off. Check out our customer reviews to learn more about what it’s like to ship prescription medications from Canada to America. We have over 425,000 verified customer reviews that demonstrate satisfaction with how we do things!

Please don’t hesitate to speak with our team to learn more about how we can support you. Call 1-866-539-5330 today or contact us online. We look forward to providing timely, comprehensive assistance.