Revealing the Truth about Insulin Injection Sites - How they can Make a Big Difference
As previously described, different insulins have different activity profiles. Equally as important as taking the right insulin is looking after it and injecting correctly.
Insulin is a temperature sensitive hormone. It is very important to store your insulin whilst not in use at the recommended temperature, this usually means the refrigerator. Once in use it can be kept at room temperature, but if you live or go on vacation to a hot country, you should take extra care. Special cooling packs are available to keep your insulin at an acceptable temperature. Frio make a range of products to keep your supplies cool.
The area on your body where you inject (the injection site) and the injection depth can have a dramatic affect on the insulin.
Insulin must be injected into fat tissue, not muscle or skin. If you accidentally inject into muscle, it will be painful and the insulin will be absorbed more quickly. lnjecting into skin can lead to painful blistering. Talk to your Doctor about your appropriate needle length. If you have very little body fat, you will benefit from shorter needles, likewise longer needles may be required for those with more body fat.
The injection site you choose also affects the insulin. Injecting into your upper arms and abdomen will be absorbed faster than injecting into your thighs or buttocks. If you are quite thin, you should pinch together some skin / fat and inject into that. Conversely if you have plenty of fat it can help to stretch your skin a little before injecting.
Repeated use of the same injection site can lead to a condition called fat hypertrophy, which is characterised by lumpy skin and can cause your insulin not to be absorbed properly. If you are suddenly experiencing problems with glucose control, try varying your injection site. It is a very good idea to rotate your injection site anyway, ideally daily, even if only by an a small amount.
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More Resources
[ www.jdrf.org ]
[ www.childrenwithdiabetes.com ]
[ www.joslin.org ]
[ www.diabetes.org
]
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[ Symptoms ] [ Initial Diagnosis ] [ Risks ] [ Treatments ] [ Injection Sites ] [ Pens and Syringes ] [ Insulin Pumps ] [ Infusion Sets ]
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