What Type of Insulin Is Best Suited for My Diabetes?

Your doctor will work with you to prescribe the type of insulin that is best for you and your diabetes. Deciding what type of insulin might be best for you will depend on many factors, including:

* Your body's individualized response to insulin (how long it takes insulin to be absorbed in the body and remain active in the body varies slightly from individual to individual).
* Your own lifestyle choices -- for instance, the type of food you eat, if/how much alcohol you drink, or how much exercise you get – are all factors that influence your body's processing of insulin.
* How willing you are to give yourself multiple injections per day.
* How frequently you are willing to check your blood sugar level.
* Your age.
* Your blood sugar management goals.

The following chart lists the types of injectable insulin with details about onset (the length of time before insulin reaches the bloodstream and begins to lower blood sugar), peak (the time period when the insulin is the most effective in lowering blood sugar) and duration (how long insulin continues to lower blood sugar). These three factors may vary, depending on your body's response. The final column provides some insight into the "coverage" provided by the different insulin types in relation to mealtime.

Diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus (IPA: /ˌdaɪəˈbiːtiːz/ or /ˌdaɪəˈbiːtəs/, /məˈlaɪtəs/ or /ˈmɛlətəs/), often referred to simply as diabetes (Ancient Greek: διαβαίνειν "to pass through"), is a syndrome of disordered metabolism, usually due to a combination of hereditary and environmental causes, resulting in abnormally high blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia).[2] Blood glucose levels are controlled by a complex interaction of multiple chemicals and hormones in the body, including the hormone insulin made in the beta cells of the pancreas. Diabetes mellitus refers to the group of diseases that lead to high blood glucose levels due to defects in either insulin secretion or insulin action.

Diabetes mellitus type 2

Diabetes mellitus type 2 or type 2 diabetes (formerly called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), or adult-onset diabetes) is a metabolic disorder that is characterized by high blood glucose in the context of insulin resistance and relative insulin deficiency. While it is often initially managed by increasing exercise and dietary modification, medications are typically needed as the disease progresses. There are an estimated 23.6 million people in the U.S. (7.8% of the population) with diabetes with 17.9 million being diagnosed , 90% of which are type 2. With prevalence rates doubling between 1990 and 2005, CDC has characterized the increase as an epidemic. Traditionally considered a disease of adults, type 2 diabetes is increasingly diagnosed in children in parallel to rising obesity rates.

Unlike type 1 diabetes, there is little tendency toward ketoacidosis in type 2 diabetes, though it is not unknown. One effect that can occur is nonketonic hyperglycemia which also is quite dangerous, though it must be treated very differently. Complex and multifactorial metabolic changes very often lead to damage and function impairment of many organs, most importantly the cardiovascular system in both types. This leads to substantially increased morbidity and mortality in both type 1 and type 2 patients, but the two have quite different origins and treatments despite the similarity in complications.