Trulicity and diet: What foods should you avoid?

There are no specific foods you must avoid, but stomach side effects are common when you first start taking Trulicity. Adjusting your eating patterns and food choices may help you manage these side effects. For example, you might try avoiding large meals, eating more slowly and avoiding fatty, fried or spicy foods. Also, limit sugar intake, caffeine, and alcohol consumption.

The most common stomach-related side effects when you start treatment with Trulicity include:

• nausea
• diarrhea
• vomiting
• stomach-area (abdominal) pain
• decreased appetite
• indigestion or heartburn

Trulicity (dulaglutide) is prescription medicine approved to help adults and children 10 years of age and older with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar levels. It is used in addition to a healthy diet and exercise.

Trulicity is also used to help reduce the risk of death, heart attack, or stroke in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus with known heart disease or multiple risk factors for heart disease.

Trulicity is not approved as a weight loss drug, but many people lost weight in clinical studies, some up to 4.5 kg (10 lbs) when using the highest 4.5 mg dose.

If you experience nausea or other stomach side effects with Trulicity, you could try:

• splitting your meals into eating smaller meals over the day
• eating more slowly; stop eating when you feel full
• avoiding fatty foods, fried foods, fast-food and spicy meals
• eating more bland foods over the short-term, like toast, rice or saltine crackers
• avoiding or limit alcohol consumption (no more than one serving per day for women or two servings per day for men)
• avoiding or limiting carbonated beverages and caffeine, which may worsen indigestion
• sitting up for at least 30 minutes after you eat; not laying down
• limiting excessive sugar intake

Are stomach side effects common with Trulicity?

Stomach side effects can be common but mainly happen when first starting Trulicity treatment or adjusting doses. This is a side effect caused by the medicine, but may be worsened by certain foods you eat.

In clinical studies, 8% to 29% of people using Trulicity experienced nausea, which usually occurred in the first few days. Nausea lessened for most but not all people after 2 weeks.

Stomach side effects are not usually a long-term side effect with Trulicity. Overall, less than 2% of people needed to stop taking Trulicity because of nausea. Switching to a higher dose of Trulicity may also temporarily worsen your nausea.

What foods should I eat with Trulicity?

A backbone of treatment for type 2 diabetes is a healthy diet plan and regular exercise. Most people recover from the initial stomach side effects once they have reached their maintenance dose, and can continue with a recommended diet from their healthcare provider.

Keep in mind that certain foods and alcohol can worsen your blood sugar control and also slow down weight loss. If you need help determining which foods you should include or eliminate in your diet, speak to your primary care doctor or to a licensed dietician.

Also work with your healthcare provider to learn how to monitor your blood sugar levels throughout the day.

Blood sugar can also be affected by stress, illness, surgery, exercise, other medicines or skipping meals. Tell your healthcare provider if you are taking other medicines to treat diabetes, including insulin or sulfonylureas.

Foods to try

Nutrient dense, fresh foods are often recommended when people are treating type 2 diabetes and trying to lose weight. Good options include:

• fresh fruits and vegetables, leafy green vegetables
• whole grains like brown rice, cereal, oatmeal or whole grain bread
• lean meats, fish and poultry
• eggs or tofu
• legumes like beans, peas and lentils
• unsalted nuts and seeds
• low-fat or fat-free dairy products

Be sure to drink plenty of fluids, like water and low-calorie beverages. This can help to prevent dehydration, especially in older patients. It is recommended to consume 2 to 3 liters (at least 64 ounces, or 8 cups) of low calorie fluids per day.

Foods to avoid

Avoid foods that are highly processed, like boxed or canned food, with high amounts of salt, added sugars (like high fructose corn syrup or molasses) and unhealthy, saturated fats. This could include:

• fast food
• junk food, like chips, cookies, pastry or ice cream
• processed foods
• alcoholic beverages, like beer, wine or spirits
• refined grains like white rice or pasta, white flour, and bread or cornmeal
• beverages high in sugar, like some juices, sodas or sweetened coffee or tea

You should avoid drinking alcohol if your diabetes is not well controlled or if you have high triglycerides, neuropathy (nerve damage), or pancreatitis.

It might help to adjust the amount and types of food you have on your plate, too. For example, using the “Plate Method” for meals can help to balance your food types and amounts. Using the “Plate Method”, you can select items for your plate (based on a 9-inch diameter plate) in this manner:

• fill half of the plate with nonstarchy vegetables (for example: lettuce greens, green beans, and broccoli)
• fill one quarter with a lean protein, such as chicken, beans, tofu, or eggs.
• fill one quarter with carbohydrates that include grains, starchy vegetables (such as potatoes and peas), rice, pasta, beans, fruit, and yogurt. A cup of milk also counts as a carbohydrate food.

Also, drink plenty of fresh water or unsweetened beverages with your meals. Avoid sugar-sweetened beverages (including fruit juice, sodas, teas and coffee drinks). Drink fresh water as a replacement.

Learn more: Which foods are high in fat?

Guidelines are available to help you and your healthcare provider determine the most appropriate levels of fats, protein, carbohydrates, micronutrients and vitamins you should consume daily when using GLP-1 receptor agonists.

Review the American Diabetes Association (ADA) website which may be useful for recipe and meal planning.

GLP-1 receptor agonists are used for blood sugar control in type 2 diabetes, weight loss or cardiovascular risk reduction, and includes treatments like:

• Mounjaro (tirzepatide)
• Rybelsus (semaglutide)
• Zepbound (tirzepatide)
• Ozempic (semglutide)
• Wegovy (semaglutide)
• Saxenda (liraglutide)
• Victoza (liraglutide)
• Trulicity (dulaglutide)

Related questions

• Trulicity vs Ozempic: Which is right for you?
• Does Trulicity cause weight loss?
• Does Trulicity need to be refrigerated?

Do you have to take Trulicity with food?

No, Trulicity can be taken with or without food. It is injected once per week subcutaneously (under the skin) of your stomach (abdomen), thigh, or upper arm, on the same day each week. You can inject your dose at any time on that day.

Your doctor may slowly increase your dose to help avoid stomach side effects. Higher doses, or quickly going up to higher doses of Trulicity may worsen stomach side effects.

If you continue to experience stomach-related side effects, contact your healthcare provider, who may need to adjust your dose.

Stomach-related safety tips with Trulicity

Before starting treatment with Trulicity, tell your healthcare provider about all of your medical conditions, including if you have any problems with your stomach, such as slowed emptying of your stomach (gastroparesis) or problems with digestion.

Also tell your healthcare provider if you have or have had problems with your pancreas, kidneys gallbladder or liver.

Stop using Trulicity and call your healthcare provider right away if you have severe pain in your stomach area (abdomen) that will not go away, with or without vomiting. You may feel the pain from your abdomen to your back.

Learn more: Side effects and warnings with Trulicity

This is not all the information you need to know about Trulicity (dulaglutide) for safe and effective use and does not take the place of your doctor’s directions. Review the full product information and discuss this information and any questions you have with your doctor or other health care provider.