How To Use Long-acting Insulin: Types, Frequency, Peak Times, And Duration

How to use long-acting insulin: Types, frequency, peak times, and duration

Long-acting insulin can help to stabilize blood sugar levels throughout the day, with only one or two shots.
Fast-acting insulin replaces the surge of insulin that a healthy pancreas would release at mealtime. In contrast, long-acting insulin mimics the low-level flow of insulin normally released between meals and overnight.
In this way, long-acting insulin works to establish a healthy baseline blood sugar level for the body to work around.
Contents of this article:
Using long-acting insulin
Long-acting insulin cannot be delivered in pill form because it would be broken down in the stomach. Instead, it must be injected into the fatty tissue under the skin. From here, it can be gradually released into the bloodstream.
Delivery methods
According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, there are a few ways to deliver long-acting insulin. These include:
Needle and syringe: a dose of insulin is drawn from a vial into a syringe. Different types of insulin must not be mixed in the same syringe.
Pen: this can be loaded with a cartridge containing a premeasured dose, or prefilled with insulin and discarded after use.
Injection port: a short tube is inserted into the tissue beneath the skin. Insulin can be delivered using either a syringe or a pen. This only requires the skin to be punctured when the tube needs to be replaced.
Injection sites
Long-acting insulin can be injected into the abdomen, upper arms, or thighs.
Abdomen injections deliver insulin into the blood most quickly. The process takes a little more time from the upper arms, and it is eve Continue reading

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10 Signs You May Have Diabetes

The number of people world-wide with diabetes has almost quadrupled since 1980, according to the World Health Organization.
The American Diabetes Association reports these other alarming statistics:
About 10% of Americans have diabetes
1.4 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes every year
More than 86 million Americans over age 20 are prediabetic
Diabetes in children is increasing
Many patients come to our practice, currently labeled as diabetic. We’re seeing more and more of our patients that are diabetic or pre-diabetic who are looking for ways to treat and reverse diabetes naturally, without Big Pharma meds.
We are very successful at normalizing blood sugar.
But what’s most disturbing are the number of people with diabetes who don’t know they have it.
Diabetes kills. It’s been linked to heart disease, kidney disease, blindness, stroke and other severe health issues. That’s why it’s imperative that you are on the lookout for these symptoms and signs that you may have diabetes.
# 1 – More Bathroom Breaks at Night
It is quite normal to get up once during the night to go to the bathroom. In fact, being properly hydrated means a nighttime trip to the commode. If you find yourself doing it more frequently, it could be a sign that you have diabetes.
Your body is less efficient at breaking food down into sugar when you have diabetes. This inefficiency causes sugar to sit in your bloodstream. Your body gets rid of the sugar in the bloodstream by flushing it out in urine. That’s why diabetics with elevated blood sugar tend to go to the bathroom a lot.
# 2 � Continue reading

Have YOU got diabetes? The 10 signs you shouldn’t ignore – and that could save your life

DIABETES is a life-long health condition that affects about 3.5 million people in the UK alone.
In 2012 it was responsible for about 1.5 million deaths worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation.
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It is caused by high levels of glucose – or sugar – in the blood because the pancreas either does not produce enough insulin to break down the sugar or cannot effectively use the insulin.
Insulin is a hormone typically produced by the pancreas and allows glucose to enter the cells in the body, where it’s used for energy.
There are two types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2.
Type 1 diabetes is usually diagnosed during childhood and is a result of cells in the body that usually produce insulin being destroyed.
Type 2 is the most common form of the disease, according to Diabetes UK, and is caused when the insulin producing cells are unable to produce enough of the hormone.
Although it is considered a chronic disease it can be managed with healthy lifestyle choices such as a balanced diet, regular exercise and maintaining a normal body weight.
However, like all conditions, if it is not managed properly people may well develop uncontrolled diabetes.
This can trigger a range of conditions from frequent infections, vision problems and even kidney disease.
1. High blood sugar readings
This may sound obvious given diabetes is caused by high sugar levels.
Usually, diabetes medication and a healthy lifestyle will manage blood sugar levels to an almost normal level.
But when it is uncontrolled a person's blood sugar levels can remain very high - an obvious warning s Continue reading

Diabetic Ketoacidosis Increases Risk of Acute Renal Failure in Pediatric Patients with Type 1 Diabetes

Condition often under-recognized, yet preventable and treatable.
Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a syndrome presenting in people with diabetes when insulin utilization is markedly diminished, whether via sudden increases in insulin requirements (most often due to acute illness) or sharp decreases in exogenous insulin administration (sudden cessation, for example). DKA is manifested as severe hyperglycemia, systemic acidosis, and severe dehydration due to rapidly increasing osmotic diuresis. This condition is especially worrisome in the pediatric diabetic population, as the resulting risk of renal injury often goes unrecognized at presentation.
In 2014, the results of the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study suggested that approximately 30% of pediatric (<18 y.o.) type 1 diabetes patients presented with DKA at initial diagnosis. Other studies have looked at the treatment of DKA in the pediatric population, and its effects on morbidity and mortality, but until now, none have attempted to correlate DKA and acute renal failure. The current issue of JAMA Pediatric presents a study looking at the incidence of acute kidney injury in pediatric patients hospitalized for DKA and attempts to show a correlation between the two events. This retrospective review collected data on pediatric T1D patients admitted to the British Columbia Children’s Hospital with DKA between September 2008 and December 2013. Patients with the above mentioned conditions and complete medical records during that period were included. The primary objective was to determine the proportion of eligible subjects who Continue reading

Insulin overdose: Dosage, symptoms, and treatment

Insulin is an important hormone used in medical treatments for people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. It helps the body's cells to properly absorb sugar.
Insulin is a lifesaving medication when taken correctly, but an insulin overdose can have some serious side effects.
This article explores signs of insulin overdose to look out for, as well as steps to take to avoid insulin overdoses.
Contents of this article:
Safe vs. unsafe insulin doses
There are a few things to consider to ensure a correct insulin dose. Insulin doses can vary greatly from person to person. The normal dose for one person may be considered an overdose for another.
Basal insulin
The insulin needed to keep the blood sugar steady throughout the day is called basal insulin.
The amount of insulin needed changes from person to person based on what time of day they take it, and whether their body is resistant to insulin or not. It is best to consult a doctor to figure out the appropriate basal insulin dosage.
Mealtime insulin
Mealtime insulin is insulin that is taken after a meal. Glucose (sugar) is released into the bloodstream as the body breaks down food, which raises the blood sugar levels.
In people with diabetes, this extra sugar must be met with extra insulin so the body can use it properly.
There are a few different factors to be considered in terms of the mealtime insulin levels. People with diabetes have to consider:
their pre-meal blood sugar
how many carbs are in the food they are eating
if they plan to do anything active after the meal
Then they must factor in their own level of insulin sensitivit Continue reading