Researchers at John Hopkins University have found out that old medicines used to treat type 2 diabetes are also efficient in modern era, making them suitable for prescription in replacement of newer and more expensive drugs.

Oral sugar-blood controllers like sulfonylureas and metformin are effective enough to successfully replace more advanced drugs like the thiazolidinediones (Actos, Avandia).

However, researchers need to focus more on the long term effects of older and newer drugs, in order to establish their importance during treatment.

Dr. Shari Bolen, from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore sifted through large medical data bases and found 216 relevant studies that underlined the positive effects of oral treatment with older drugs during the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

There were limited data available on the impact that these drugs had on major outcomes, such as death from heart disease, so the researchers limited their comparison to intermediate endpoints, such as how well the drug controls blood sugar levels.

Differences between older and newer drugs were found when dealing with side effect, like the increase or decrease of cholesterol levels. Thiazolidinediones were the only drugs that increased HDL "good" cholesterol levels, but they also increased LDL "bad" cholesterol levels. Metformin reduced LDL cholesterol levels, while the other agents appeared to have no effect on cholesterol levels.

With the exception of metformin, the drugs generally increased body weight by 1 to 5 kilograms. Compared with other drugs, sulfonylureas and repaglinide were tied to increased risks of low blood sugar, thiazolidinediones were linked to heart failure, and metformin raised the risk of stomach and intestinal problems.

"Each oral diabetes agent is associated with adverse events that counterbalance its benefits," the researchers conclude. "Overall, metformin seemed to have the best profile of benefit to risk."

Type 2 Diabetes or also called adult onset diabetes is a condition that requires immediate care if complications are to be reduced or avoided. Care of type 2 diabetes extends life expectancy greatly for the patient.

Type two diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. The frequency of this category of diabetes exists in all cultures and backgrounds. Generally the cause for type two diabetes stems from a combination of genetics and bad eating habits or obesity. It generally develops in adults over 35 years of age. While type 2 diabetes has commonly affected adults it is being seen in young adults and even children. The root cause for these cases is generally due to lack of exercise, poor diet and obesity. The insulin levels with type 2 diabetics are either low or the insulin is not being properly used by the body. This will produce hyperglycemia due to an error in the body’s insulin production.