Insulin: Is it for You?

Many people with type 2 diabetes can benefit

By Lance Porter

You’ve been managing your diabetes with diet, exercise and oral medications. Now, your doctor says it’s time begin taking insulin—but you’re hesitant. Sound like you? If so, here are some tips about starting insulin therapy, and why you may need to make the change.

People with Type 2 diabetes usually still make some insulin naturally. But their pancreases may not make enough. Or, their bodies may have become resistant to it—a condition known as “insulin resistance.” Insulin resistance is especially common in people who are overweight.

At first, a person with Type 2 diabetes may not have to take insulin. If your insulin resistance is caused primarily by excess weight, for example, diet and weight loss may be enough to put your insulin production and insulin needs back in balance—especially if it is combined with regular exercise, which helps burn blood sugar and reduces your need for insulin.

Additionally, there are oral medications that can encourage your pancreas to make more insulin or help make your body more sensitive to it.

But type 2 diabetes is a progressive disease, and eventually most people with Type 2 diabetes wind up taking insulin, just like Type 1s.

It’s not as bad as you may think!

You may not like the idea of taking insulin. Many people dread giving themselves shots. But insulin can be a godsend. The discovery of insulin was one of the most fantastic medical breakthroughs of all time!

Now, when your body doesn’t make as much insulin as it needs naturally, you can make up the difference with insulin from the pharmacy. Using insulin to keep your blood sugar close to normal dramatically reduces your risk of developing any of the complications of diabetes. When your doctor tells you that insulin has become a medical necessity, your best option is to be glad it is available!

Unfortunately, you can’t take insulin as a pill. Insulin is a protein, and your stomach would digest it before it could do any good. So the most common way to take insulin is as a shot—either with a conventional needle and syringe, or with an insulin pen. Most people cringe at the idea of giving themselves a shot, but modern manufacturing technology has resulted in needles that are many times finer and sharper than the ones you remember from your childhood. Believe it or not, they are virtually painless.

Another option is the insulin pump. An insulin pump is a computerized device about the size of a pager that contains a cartridge full of insulin. It delivers insulin to your body through plastic tubing called an “infusion set.” The insertion location of the infusion set has to be changed every three days, and that feels about like taking a shot. Of course, with multiple daily injections, you’d be taking 12 shots in three days—compared to one re-insertion every three days on the pump.

Finally, the Food and Drug Administration recently approved the first inhalable insulin. At present one company only offers it, but several others are developing similar systems. In the end, it doesn’t matter what you have to do to keep your blood sugar under control. If diet and exercise works, that’s great. If oral medications work, that’s great. If it takes insulin, that’s great, too. Keep your blood sugar down to normal or nearly normal levels—by whatever means—and you can live a long, healthy, fantastic life with diabetes!

Lance Porter is the editor of “Diabetes Positive!” magazine and author of the book, “28 Days to Diabetes Control!”