Recall of metformin extended releaseIn May 2020, the
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended some makers of metformin extended-release oral tablet to remove some of their tablets from the U.S. market. This is because an unacceptable level of a probable carcinogen (cancer-causing agent) was found in some of the extended-release metformin tablets. If you currently take this drug, talk with your healthcare professional. They will advise whether you should continue to take your medication or if you need a new prescription. You can also look up for your metformin product on the FDADrug Recalls website.
Key takeaways
- Several new medications have been developed to help manage diabetes by increasing insulin sensitivity or directly replacing insulin.
- One of the more recently approved drugs is Mounjaro (tirzepatide), an injectable drug approved along with diet and exercise to treat type 2 diabetes.
- A new pill for type 2 diabetes, orforglipron, is in clinical trials and expected to become available for use worldwide.
- Some new type 2 diabetes treatments can help with weight loss, but they’re not approved for use as a weight loss drug.
When you have diabetes, your body has difficulty managing insulin, a hormone your pancreas produces. Insulin helps your body use glucose (sugar) from the food you eat. Insulin moves glucose from your bloodstream into your cells, which use it for energy.
With type 1 diabetes, you cannot make your own insulin. With type 2 diabetes, you can make insulin, but your body isn’t able to use it properly. With both types, glucose stays in your blood instead of moving into cells, causing high blood glucose levels. Diabetes medications work in different ways to lower blood sugar levels.
Insulin is the only medication used to treat type 1 diabetes. Several types of insulin are available based on how long they take to work.
A broader range of medications is used to treat type 2 diabetes. Some people may need to take more than one type of medication to treat their condition.
Read on to learn about new diabetes drug options and drugs in development.
The following table summarizes new type 1 and type 2 diabetes drugs, including their active ingredient(s) (what makes the drug work). Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved these medications years ago, not everyone is familiar with them. The latter sections of this article provide more information about how they work and when they were approved.
| Drug name and form | Active ingredients | Diabetes type treated |
|---|---|---|
| Oral tablets: | ||
| Xigduo XR | metformin, dapagliflozin | type 2 |
| Synjardy, Synjardy XR | metformin, empagliflozin | type 2 |
| Glyxambi | linagliptin, empagliflozin | type 2 |
| Steglujan | ertugliflozin, sitagliptin | type 2 |
| Segluromet | ertugliflozin, metformin | type 2 |
| Steglatro | ertugliflozin | type 2 |
| Rybelsus | semaglutide | type 2 |
| Brenzavvy | bexagliflozin | type 2 |
| Inhaled powder: | ||
| Afrezza | human insulin | type 1 and 2 |
| Subcutaneous injections: | ||
| Tresiba | insulin degludec | type 1 and 2 |
| Basaglar | insulin glargine | type 1 and 2 |
| Toujeo | insulin glargine | type 1 and 2 |
| Xultophy | insulin degludec, liraglutide | type 2 |
| Soliqua | insulin glargine, lixisenatide | type 2 |
| Ozempic | semaglutide | type 2 |
| Mounjaro | tirzepatide | type 2 |
| Adlyxin | lixisenatide | type 2 |
Except for Steglatro, Rybelsus, and Brenzavvy, the following oral tablets are combination drugs. They each combine two drugs that can be used alone to treat type 2 diabetes.
These medications are all brand-name drugs, and they aren’t available as generic drugs.
Xigduo XR
The FDA approved Xigduo XR in 2014. It’s a 24-hour extended-release oral tablet that combines metformin with dapagliflozin. Xigduo XR is taken once daily.
Metformin helps make body tissues more sensitive to insulin. Dapagliflozin blocks some of the glucose in your body from reentering your blood through your kidneys. This causes your body to get rid of more glucose through your urine.
Synjardy
Synjardy, which is also available as Synjardy XR, was approved for use in 2015. It is a combination of the drugs metformin and empagliflozin, which works similarly to dapagliflozin.
Synjardy is taken twice per day, and Synjardy XR is taken once per day.
Glyxambi
Glyxambi, approved in 2015, combines the drugs linagliptin and empagliflozin. It’s taken once daily.
Linagliptin blocks the breakdown of certain hormones in your body that tell your pancreas to make and release insulin. It also slows your digestion, which slows the release of glucose into your blood.
Steglujan
Steglujan, approved in 2017, combines ertugliflozin and sitagliptin and is taken once daily. (Sitagliptin is also the active ingredient in the brand-name drug Januvia.)
Ertugliflozin works through the same mechanism as empagliflozin. Sitagliptin blocks the breakdown of certain hormones in your body that tell your pancreas to make and release insulin. It also slows your digestion, which slows the absorption of glucose into your blood.
Segluromet
Segluromet, approved in 2017, combines ertugliflozin and metformin. Segluromet is usually taken twice daily to help manage blood sugar levels.
Steglatro
Steglatro, approved in 2017, is the brand-name version of the drug ertugliflozin. It works the same way as empagliflozin. Steglatro is usually taken once daily.
Rybelsus
Approved for type 2 diabetes treatment in 2017, Rybelsus is a brand-name tablet version of semaglutide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist (GLP-1 agonist). Rybelsus is taken once daily.
GLP-1 agonists (also known as GLP-1 medications) help the pancreas release more insulin when your glucose level is high and slow down glucose absorption during digestion. They also reduce hunger and food intake, potentially causing weight loss.
Semaglutide is also the active ingredient in Ozempic. For details about this drug, see the “New injectables for diabetes” section.
Brenzavvy
Brenzavvy is a sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor approved in 2023 to treat type 2 diabetes. Brenzavvy is taken once daily.
Afrezza (human insulin) is the only inhaled fast-acting insulin available on the market. Afrezza was approved in 2014 to treat both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Afrezza is available only as a brand-name drug.
Afrezza helps manage blood sugar spikes that can occur after you eat a meal.
The following new brand-name injectable drugs are used to treat type 2 diabetes or both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. They are available only as brand-name drugs.
These injectable drugs contain one or two active ingredients. Some contain insulin, some include a GLP-1 agonist, and some contain both active ingredients. The different types of injected insulin replace the insulin your body doesn’t make or can’t use properly.
Tresiba
Tresiba, approved in 2015, is a brand-name version of the drug insulin degludec. Tresiba treats both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Tresiba is a long-acting insulin that lasts up to 42 hours, which is longer than commonly used insulin medications. Tresiba is injected once daily.
Basaglar and Toujeo
Basaglar and Toujeo are two new forms of insulin glargine. They are both injected once daily and used to treat type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Basaglar is a long-acting insulin drug that was approved in 2015. It’s similar to another insulin glargine drug called Lantus. It lasts for 24 hours.
Toujeo is a more concentrated form of insulin glargine. It was approved for use in 2015 and lasts for 36 hours.
Xultophy
Xultophy combines insulin degludec, a long-acting insulin, and liraglutide, a GLP-1 agonist.
Liraglutide is also the active ingredient in the brand-name drugs Victoza, used to treat type 2 diabetes, and Saxenda, used to treat obesity and overweight.
Soliqua
Soliqua was approved in 2016 to treat type 2 diabetes and is injected once daily. Soliqua combines insulin glargine with lixisenatide, a GLP-1 agonist.
Adlyxin
Adlyxin (lixisenatide) was approved in 2016 to treat type 2 diabetes. It’s injected once daily.
Ozempic
Ozempic was initially approved in 2017 to help manage blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes. Since then, it’s been approved for other uses in people with type 2 diabetes, specifically to reduce certain heart risks and help prevent worsening kidney function in people with chronic kidney disease.
Ozempic is a brand-name version of semaglutide that’s injected once per week.
Because it contains a GLP-1 agonist, Ozempic is sometimes prescribed to treat obesity. But taking Ozempic for weight loss is an off-label use of the drug. Ozempic is not approved for weight management.
Mounjaro
The FDA approved Mounjaro in 2022 for treating type 2 diabetes. Mounjaro’s active ingredient, tirzepatide, belongs to a group of drugs called dual glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and GLP-1 agonists.
Mounjaro is the first dual GIP/GLP-1 agonist approved to treat type 2 diabetes. It’s injected once per week.
Sometimes doctors prescribe Mounjaro off-label for weight loss.
However, Zepbound is a different brand-name version of tirzepatide that’s FDA approved for long-term weight management and obstructive sleep apnea in people with obesity.
In addition to the new medications approved for diabetes, several diabetes drugs are currently being developed. These drugs include:
- Orforglipron: This once-daily oral tablet is a GLP-1 agonist that completed a successful Phase 3 clinical trial in April 2025. More Phase 3 trials are underway, but the manufacturer expects orforglipron to be available worldwide as a treatment for type 2 diabetes and obesity in adults.
- Amycretin: This drug combines a long-acting GLP-1 agonist and an amylin receptor agonist. Amylin is a hormone involved in regulating blood sugar levels, appetite, and weight. Both oral and injectable forms of Amycretin are entering Phase 3 trials. Amycretin is meant for adults with type 2 diabetes and adults with obesity or overweight.
- CagriSema: A combination of a GLP-1 agonist and cagrilintide, an amylin mimic, CagriSema is in development for treating type 2 diabetes.
- Dance 501: This aerosol device contains liquid insulin that is intended to be inhaled at mealtime. Dance 501 is designed to treat both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
While many effective diabetes drugs have been on the market for years, new drugs may provide benefits that aren’t available with more common diabetes drugs.
Keep in mind that all the side effects and interactions of new drugs may not currently be known. Also, newer drugs may cost more than older drugs or may not yet be covered by most insurance plans.
In addition, your insurance plan may prefer certain drugs over others, or they may require you to do a trial of older, less expensive medications before they cover the newer, more expensive drugs.
It’s important to talk with your doctor if you’re considering new diabetes drug options. Discuss your full medical history with your doctor, as well as all medications and supplements you take.
Together, you and your doctor can decide if any newer drugs may be right for you.
Disclaimer: Healthline has made every effort to make certain that all information is factually correct, comprehensive, and up to date. However, this article should not be used as a substitute for the knowledge and expertise of a licensed healthcare professional. You should always consult your doctor or another healthcare professional before taking any medication. The drug information contained herein is subject to change and is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. The absence of warnings or other information for a given drug does not indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective, or appropriate for all patients or all specific uses.