Patients with diabetes who are treated with insulin injections may occasionally have fluctuations in blood glucose levels. If blood glucose levels do not drop after insulin injections, what should the patient do?
Don’t worry, insulin is not the only way to control your diabetes. Healthy lifestyle habits and other diabetes medications can also help control blood sugar.
Lifestyle changes
The best ways to prevent high blood sugar include:
- Exercise. Regular exercise is like adding another “drug” to your diabetes regimen. Exercise enhances the effectiveness of insulin and removes excess glucose from the blood. Exercise can also help you lose weight. Even if you can only exercise for 5 minutes straight at first, it is best to accumulate at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise each day. To be safe, check with your doctor before exercising and follow his or her advice.
- Eat healthy. A healthy diet helps keep your blood sugar in a safe range. For those who are overweight, a healthy diet is the most important way to lose weight. It is best to work with a dietitian to develop a meal plan that fits your lifestyle. If applying weight loss medications, discuss with your doctor what is right for you.
- Relaxation. Stress can prevent the body from releasing insulin, causing a buildup of glucose in the blood. If you are stressed for long periods of time, your blood sugar levels will continue to rise. Yoga, meditation, tai chi and breathing exercises can help lower blood sugar.
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Increasing insulin dose
If the injected insulin is not enough to lower your blood sugar, your doctor may give you the following advice.
- Increase the dose of insulin.
- Inject rapid-acting insulin before a meal to help lower blood sugar after a meal.
- Inject long-acting insulin once or twice a day to help you control your blood sugar more smoothly.
- Use an insulin pump to make it easier to manage your blood glucose levels.
Consider other medications
In addition to insulin injections, there are other medications that can be used to control excessive blood sugar. Some common medications include:
- Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists. These drugs lower blood glucose in people with type 2 diabetes, making them feel full after a meal, so they can eat less and lose weight. These drugs are given by injection and may cause some side effects, such as nausea, vomiting, weakness, or dizziness.
- Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors. These drugs lower postprandial blood glucose in people with type 2 diabetes and are given by mouth. Side effects vary depending on the drug of choice.
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Treating the cause
There are other causes of hyperglycemia, such as insulin resistance. Insulin resistance may run in families, and the body of a person with insulin resistance does not respond properly to the insulin produced. High blood sugar can also be caused by taking medications for other conditions that prevent the body from using insulin.
Patients who have repeated injections at the same site may have scarring at that site, which in turn may interfere with the body’s absorption of insulin. Consider changing the injection site or using an insulin pump.
Some patients reduce the amount of insulin on their own. Patients may do this because they are afraid of the risk of hypoglycemia, or they have a fear of needles. A slow increase in insulin dose may make the patient feel more comfortable. If you do not like needles, consider using an insulin pump or injection pen.
Regardless of the cause of elevated blood glucose, patients must actively work with their doctors to find a solution. In particular, you should not change the insulin injection dose on your own.