Eli Lilly, ZYPREXA, and Diabetes

As seen in this column

How does zyprexa cause diabetes?

What occurs is there is a TEN times greater incident of becoming a type 2 diabetic from zyprexa. The prevailing theory is because it causes weight gain which itself is a precursor for diabetes AND more sinister it may actually poison the pancreatic beta cells killing them off.

I took zyprexa starting in 1996 the year the FDA approved it, which was ineffective for my condition and gave me diabetes.

Zyprexa is the product name for Olanzapine, it is Lilly's top selling drug.It was approved by the FDA in 1996, an 'atypical' antipsychotic a newer class of drugs without the motor side effects of the older Thorazine. Zyprexa has been linked to causing diabetes and pancreatitis.

Zyprexa, which is used for the treatment of psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, accounted for 32% of Eli Lilly's $14.6 billion revenue last year.

Did you know that Lilly made nearly $3 billion last year on diabetic meds, Actos, Humulin and Byetta?

Yes! They sell a drug that can cause diabetes and then turn a profit on the drugs that treat the condition that they may have caused in the first place!

I was prescribed Zyprexa from 1996 until 2000.

In early 2000 i was shocked to have an A1C test result of 13.9 (normal is 4-6) I have no history of diabetes in my family.

All the psychiatrist I've interviewed and the information on line presents zyprexa as a worse offender than the other Atypicals such as seroquel.My doctor has stopped prescribing zyprexa altogether.

The PDR classifies zyprexa as 'severe' for causing weight gain and diabetes and seroquel as 'moderate'.

Of course the 50 year old Thorazine didn't cause diabetes and is many times cheaper but it could cause tardive dyskinesia.

Where Eli Lilly's negligence comes in, is their KNOWING and not informing consumers (black box warning) until the FDA demanded it.

Lilly's incentive not to readily disclose is they had billions coming in from state medicaid scripts.