Do You Give Insulin Before Or After Meals

How Does A Person Mix Insulin

Self-mixing insulin requires a person to inject themselves with two types of insulin in one injection.

The types of insulin people can use are intermediate-acting insulin and short- or rapid-acting insulin. These insulins take different lengths of time to work, helping a persons blood sugar levels to remain steady throughout the day.

A person can mix the two insulins in the following way:

Premixed insulin is a pre-prepared mixture of different insulins. Premixed insulin generally contains 7075% intermediate-acting insulin and 2530% short- or rapid-acting insulin.

A person may prefer to use premixed insulin if they:

• find it difficult to measure and draw up the insulin themselves
• prefer the convenience of a premade solution
• have variable eating and exercise patterns

However, a person is unable to adjust premixed insulin. This means that if a person increases their pre-dinner dose of premixed insulin to offset high blood sugar levels before going to bed, they are at risk of overnight hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia is when a persons blood sugar levels drop too low.

Insulin Sensitivity And Your Dose

You may hear your healthcare professional talk about insulin sensitivity. This is how well your body is using insulin to get your blood sugar levels down. People with high sensitivity need less insulin than those with low sensitivity.

Your healthcare professional can test you for insulin sensitivity, and this will help them decide what dose of insulin you will need, and if insulin of you need it at all.

Not Drinking Enough Water

It’s not just what you eat, but also what you drink or don’t drink that can change the effectiveness of insulin. “Staying hydrated by drinking lots of water helps your kidneys flush out extra sugar floating around in your bloodstream,” Port explains. “It also helps medications like insulin work better, by helping to maintain good blood flow so the medicine can reach the tissues and cells where theyre needed most.” To remind yourself to drink water throughout the day, carry a refillable water bottle around with you. Use it a lot. And skip the sports and performance drinks, says Port, since they usually just give you more sugar.

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Too Much Insulin Or Not Enough

High morning blood sugar levels before breakfast can be a puzzle. If you haven’t eaten, why did your blood sugar level go up? There are two common reasons for high before-breakfast blood sugar levels. One relates to hormones that are released in the early part of sleep . The other is from taking too little insulin in the evening. To see which one is the cause, set your alarm to self-monitor around 2 or 3 a.m. for several nights and discuss the results with your health care provider.

Should I Sterilize The Skin With Alcohol Before Giving The Injection

No, do not swab the skin with alcohol to ‘sterilize’ it. There are four reasons:

• The smell of the alcohol can make your dog dislike the injections.
• Due to the nature of the thick hair coat and the type of bacteria that live near the skin of dogs, brief swabbing with alcohol or any other antiseptic is not effective.
• Because a small amount of alcohol can be carried through the skin by the needle, it may actually carry bacteria with it into the skin.
• If you have accidentally injected the insulin onto the surface of the skin, you will not know it. If you do not use alcohol and the skin or hair is wet following an injection, you will know that the injection was not done properly.

Although the above procedures may at first seem complicated and somewhat overwhelming, they will very quickly become second nature. Your dog will soon learn that once or twice each day it has to sit still for a few moments. In most cases, a reward of stroking results in a fully cooperative dog that eventually may not even need to be held.

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Disposal Of Used Insulin Syringes

Used syringes, pen needles, cannulas and lancets must be disposed of in an Australian Standards-approved sharps container, which is puncture-proof and has a secure lid. These containers are usually yellow and are available through pharmacies, local municipal councils and state or territory diabetes organisations such as Diabetes Victoria. Procedures to dispose of sharps containers vary from state to state.For sharps disposal information and help, you can contact:

• state or territory diabetes organisations, such as Diabetes Victoria
• state department of health

Insulin needs to be stored correctly. This includes:

• storing unopened insulin on its side in a fridge
• keeping the fridge temperature between 2 and 8°C
• making sure that insulin does not freeze
• once opened, keeping it at room temperature for not more than one month and then disposing of it safely
• avoiding keeping insulin in direct sunlight.

Extreme temperatures can damage insulin so it doesn’t work properly. It must not be left where temperatures are over 30 °C. In summer your car can get this hot so don’t leave your insulin there.

There are various insulated insulin carry bags available for transporting insulin.

The Ideal Time To Take Metformin For Weight Loss

You cant use metformin as a magic diet pill as it works slowly. The ratio of weight loss in metformin varies from person to person. Its one of the unique benefits if it cant help you in weight loss it also doesnt become the cause of your weight gain.

If you are prediabetes or type 2 diabetes patients or the one suffering obesity, then metformin can prove to be the best option. Through metformin, you can manage your weight and can lower the risk of developing diabetes.

Doctors can prescribe you metformin for weight loss even if you dont have diabetes or its symptoms. If a person does regular exercise and adopts a healthy diet in addition to metformin, then the chances of weight loss improve.

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Best Time To Take Metformin

Are you wondering about the best time to take metformin? First of all, let me make it clear that medication time matters a lot. You can ensure the best efficiency of the medicine by taking it at the ideal time. Usually, metformin comes into two different varieties. They are famous as standard and extended-release.

According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, we can use standard metformin either as a liquid or a pill. You can use it two to three times a day and can take this medicine with a meal. When we use it with food, it reduces the side effects such as stomach pain.

Metformin HCL and extended-release are once-a-day medication. They are available in both liquid and pill form. The persons who experience adverse symptoms with standard metformin, extended-release can be a good option for them. You can take metformin HCL at night with food.

When Do I Take Rapid

You should inject rapid-acting insulin no more than 15 minutes before you eat. Your doctor will tell you how much insulin to inject. Remember, you should not wait more than 15 minutes to eat after you take this insulin shot.

Rapid-acting insulin can be more convenient to take than regular insulin. With regular insulin, you inject the insulin and then wait 30 to 60 minutes before eating. Many people find it hard to time their meals around regular insulin injections. Sometimes they end up eating too soon or too late. Then they dont achieve the best blood sugar control. Since rapid-acting insulin is taken so close to mealtime, it may help you control your blood sugar more effectively.

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Avoiding Injection Bruises And Lumps

Bruising can happen when you catch a tiny capillary under the skin where you have injected. It is quite normal for this to happen occasionally when you are injecting regularly and youre not doing anything wrong.

If you are concerned, you could make an appointment with your diabetes specialist nurse who will be able to do a review of your injection technique. In some cases, bleeding and bruising can be reduced by something as simple as using a different sized needle or changing your needle after each injection.

Some people notice hard lumps that can form if you inject in the same place too often. This might be lipohypertrophy , or could be something called cutaneous amyloidosis. These lumps can stop the insulin from working properly, so make sure you rotate where you inject and choose a different spot each time. If you notice any lumps, especially if they’re not going away, speak to your healthcare professional for more advice.

Other side effects from injecting a lot can be itching, rashes and other skin irritations. Changing where you inject helps with this too. You can also get treatments from your local pharmacy that can will help with the irritation.

The Blood Sugar Level Regulation Mechanism

When you eat rice, bread, or any other typical food high in carbohydrates, it is digested by the stomach and small intestine, where it is absorbed into the blood as glucose. Figure 1 shows how it is absorbed into the body.

Figure 1: Absorption of glucose

When glucose enters the bloodstream, insulin facilitates its uptake into the body’s cells. When an excess of glucose is ingested, insulin over secretion occurs. Insulin increases the biosynthesis of fat and suppresses its breakdown. Thus, it becomes easier for fat to accumulate in body tissues.

Blood sugar level will not drop if the sugar in the blood is not properly processed due to, for example, too little insulin being secreted, or resistance to the action of insulin. If blood sugar levels have not decreased several hours after eating on a regular basis, this indicates a susceptibility to diabetes. To avoid this and stay healthy, we should eat types of foods that will not cause a sudden, extreme rise in blood sugar levels.

What is BMI?

What is a healthy blood sugar level

• Fasting blood sugar level 99mg/dL
• Postprandial blood sugar level 7.8mmol/L

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Disadvantages Of The Sliding Scale Regimen:

• The sliding scale method does not accommodate changes in insulin needs related to snacks or to stress and activity.
• You still need to count carbohydrates.
• Sliding scales are less effective in covering a pre-meal high blood sugar, because the high blood glucose correction and food bolus cannot be split.

Dont Wait More Than 15 Minutes To Eat After Taking A Mealtime Insulin

Rapid-acting insulins were designed to be taken right before you eat to help you control your blood sugar more effectively.

As the name suggests, rapid-acting insulin starts to work rapidly in the bloodstream. If you wait too long to eat, your blood sugar can actually end up getting too low. This puts you at risk for hypoglycemia.

If, for some reason, you cant eat a meal after youve already taken your mealtime insulin, you should carry around glucose tablets, juice, non-diet soda, raisins, or hard candies to avoid hypoglycemia.

Calculating the right dose of mealtime insulin can be complicated at first, especially if you dont know how many carbohydrates youre going to be eating at your next meal.

Try not to panic if you realize you took too much or too little insulin.

If you think youve taken too much insulin, eat some rapidly-absorbed carbs, like juice or glucose tabs. Also, you may want to call your doctor.

If youve taken a lot more than you need , have a friend or family member get you to a hospital. You may need to be observed for severe low blood sugar.

If you think youve taken too little insulin, or you completely forgot to take it at all before your meal, measure your blood sugar. If it gets too high, you may need to take a short or rapid-acting insulin as a corrective measure to lower your blood glucose levels. If youre at all unsure about the dose, seek advice from your doctor or diabetes care team.

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Do Check Your Blood Sugar Regularly And Write Down Each Measurement

Your insulin treatment involves much more than injecting insulin. You need to check your blood sugar level regularly using a blood glucose monitor. The constant need to test your blood sugar can feel like a burden, but its a crucial part of your diabetes care plan.

Blood sugar measurements can change depending on your stress level, how much exercise youre getting, illness, changes in your diet, and even hormonal changes during the month. Major changes could mean that you have to adjust your insulin dose.

Write down each measurement or record it in an app on your phone to show to your doctor. Your doctor needs this information to determine how much insulin is right for you.

Types And Forms Of Insulin

There are several different types of insulin, including:

• Rapid-acting insulin: This form of insulin starts to work around 15 minutes after injection. Rapid-acting insulin peaks after about 2 hours and can last between 24 hours.
• Short-acting or regular insulin: Short-acting insulin takes around 30 minutes to work. It peaks 23 hours after injection and lasts 36 hours.
• Intermediate-acting insulin: This insulin takes around 24 hours to work. It peaks after 412 hours and can be effective for around 1218 hours.
• Long-acting insulin: This form of insulin reaches the bloodstream after several hours. Long-acting insulin can work for up to 24 hours after injection.
• Ultra-long-acting insulin: This insulin reaches the bloodstream in 6 hours and does not peak. It can last up to 36 hours after injection.

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If Long Term/basal Insulin Was Forgotten

If you forget to take your long term insulin and you realise relatively soon, it should usually be fine to inject your usual dose if the dose is given within 2 hours of when it should have been done.

In this case, youll need to be aware that the injection was taken later and so the insulin will also be active in your body later than it would usually be. In some cases this could increase the chance of hypoglycaemia so speak to your health team if you have any doubts.

If it has been longer than 2 hours since your injection should have been taken and you are not sure what to do, speak to your health team who will be able to advise you. It is important not to delay getting advice as your blood glucose levels may begin rising to dangerous levels

If your blood glucose levels are high when you notice you have missed a dose, you may need to take short acting or rapid acting insulin to lower your blood glucose levels. If you are at all unsure of what dose to take, seek advice from your healthcare team.

How Do I Take Insulin

Insulin is normally injected under the skin with a very small needle. It can also be taken with an insulin pen. Your doctor will teach you exactly how to inject insulin, but here are the basics:

Wash your hands.

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Blood Sugar Level Rises Every Time You Eat

Your blood sugar level rises immediately after eating a meal or snack . In a healthy person, insulin then starts working, and the blood sugar level returns to the pre-meal level 2 hours after eating. In untreated diabetes patients, the blood sugar level does not return to the pre-meal level of its own accord. Some people’s blood sugar level remains high two hours after eating, even though on an empty stomach it would be at a normal level. As a result, the risk of developing diabetes increases as insulin is not properly secreted, or does not work properly in the body. In order to make sure insulin works properly, it is important not to overeat and to avoid becoming obese. Knowing which foods will not cause a sudden and extreme spike in blood sugar level and using this knowledge in your daily life will help you to prevent obesity and diabetes, and maintain good health.

What Happens If You Avoid Taking Your Insulin

If you have type 1 diabetes, taking insulin is essential and you cannot live without it. If you avoid taking it, your blood sugar levels can become too high and you risk developing diabetic ketoacidosis . If left untreated, DKA could be life-threatening. Thats why its important to make sure you take your insulin.

If you have type 2 diabetes and use insulin to treat your condition, you should continue to take it as prescribed. If you avoid taking it, your blood sugar levels could become too high and you may become ill. Please speak to your healthcare professional if you have any questions or concerns about taking your insulin.

Insulin is a treatment that helps manage blood sugars, so this also reduces the risk of serious long-term complications as well a shorter-term consequences. Its still important to keep going to your appointments and manage your condition with healthy lifestyle choices. Staying active and eating a healthy diet will reduce the risk of complications from your diabetes, but insulin is also an important part of your treatment.

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