Myth 1: Insulin injections mean the condition is severe.
Diabetes is a serious disease in itself, no matter what the treatment. The disease is very “deceptive” and the patient will not feel anything in the early stages of the disease. Prolonged high blood sugar can be very toxic to the body, damaging vital organs such as the heart, kidneys, eyes, and nerves.
Early treatment with insulin can also prevent complications, allow oral medications to work better, and prolong the duration of their effects.
Myth 2: You can’t stop using insulin.
Not necessarily. Some people with type 2 diabetes, such as women who develop diabetes during pregnancy, may need insulin temporarily. And some people with diabetes who have successfully lost weight may find that they no longer need insulin. The need for insulin depends a lot on how badly diabetes is damaging the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas.
Myth 3: Insulin injections can be addictive.
Never. Insulin is not a chemical drug, but a physiological hormone that the body secretes itself. In fact, everyone can’t live without insulin. Without insulin, the body would not be able to complete its metabolism and life would be unsustainable.
Diabetes is the result of absolute or relative insulin deficiency. The fact that some diabetics can’t stop using insulin is due to their condition, not to insulin addiction.
Myth 4: Insulin injections can be painful.
In fact, most patients will feel more pain from the tingling of the finger used to measure blood glucose levels than from insulin injections. In addition, insulin injections do not require a large needle syringe. There are several types of pen syringes on the market today that allow patients to control the dose of insulin. Choosing a fine needle is usually not intensely painful.
Myth 5: Insulin can cause dangerous hypoglycemia.
This is possible, but not necessarily true. people with type 2 diabetes are at a lower risk of hypoglycemia than people with type 1 diabetes. A prolonged episode of hypoglycemia can lead to loss of consciousness or coma. However, most people with type 2 diabetes can easily recognize the symptoms, which include anxiety, trembling hands, sweating, and a desire to eat. At this point, eating a little sugar or drinking a glass of juice can quickly relieve the symptoms of hypoglycemia.
Myth 6: Oral medications are more effective than insulin.
Today, the use of oral medications to treat type 2 diabetes is working quite well. Many patients have been taking oral hypoglycemic drugs for years to control their sugar with safe efficacy, such as metformin.
However, oral medications are not appropriate for all patients with diabetes. Some patients cannot synthesize insulin from their own pancreatic function and only have the option of exogenous insulin. In some patients with type 2 diabetes, the addition of basal insulin can also be effective in controlling blood glucose and reducing complications when oral hypoglycemic agents fail to control blood glucose.