In the 19th century, before the discovery of insulin, diabetes was a fatal disease and patients had to be starved to death from hyperglycemia or malnutrition. The great discovery of “insulin” saved countless diabetics. But this great drug has been suffering from “injustice” for more than 80 years, and there was a time when people treated insulin like a drug. Q: Once a person with type 2 diabetes uses insulin, is he or she “dependent for life”? A: Not necessarily. Patients with prolonged type 2 diabetes are unable to control their blood sugar satisfactorily even with the maximum amount of oral medication due to the failure of pancreatic B-cell function. These patients should apply insulin supplementation therapy early. In some of these patients, as blood glucose decreases, high glucose toxicity is lifted, and islet B-cells can be restored to some extent after a period of rest. These patients may start to be effective again when they switch to oral hypoglycemic drugs after their blood sugar is controlled. Therefore, insulin does not have the problem of “addiction or non-addiction”. Q: What are the side effects of insulin? A: The most common side effect of insulin therapy is hypoglycemia, which is related to excessive dose or irregular diet and exercise. Mild hypoglycemia commonly manifests as sweating, panic, hand trembling, dizziness, hunger, pallor and weakness. Severe cases may show drowsiness, change of mind, or even coma. For mild cases, sugar, cookies, etc. can be eaten immediately, while severe cases need to be rushed to hospital for treatment. In addition, side effects such as weight gain and edema may occur. Therefore, patients treated with insulin injections need to monitor their blood sugar regularly and follow up with the hospital for review, adjust the dosage of insulin in time under the guidance of the doctor, and develop regular diet and exercise habits. Q: Which diabetic patients must take insulin? A: Insulin is a hormone secreted by pancreatic B cells, which enables the body to effectively use the energy provided by food and lower blood sugar. So, which patients must be injected with insulin? Type 1 diabetes: Absolute lack of insulin in the body due to massive destruction of insulin B cells. Patients with this type of diabetes must be treated with insulin for life; Type 2 diabetes has the following conditions: 1. After the combination of diet and larger doses of various oral hypoglycemic drugs, but blood sugar is still poorly controlled. 2. Acute complications of diabetes such as diabetic ketoacidosis and hypertonic hyperglycemia; 3. Chronic complications of diabetes such as end-stage renal disease, acute cardiac infarction and cerebrovascular accident; 4. Combined with other acute stress conditions such as combined infection, trauma and major surgery; 5. 3. Newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus with significant hyperglycemia: For patients with initial type 2 diabetes mellitus with high blood glucose, it is difficult to satisfactorily control blood glucose with oral hypoglycemic drugs, and the rapid relief of hyperglycemic toxicity can significantly reduce insulin resistance and reverse insulin B-cell function, so early insulin intensive therapy is recommended; 4. Diabetes mellitus with significant wasting that is difficult to differentiate from type 1 diabetes mellitus: it should be treated with insulin as early as possible, while monitoring islet function during the course of the disease; v. Gestational diabetes mellitus, pregnancy and delivery in diabetic patients; vi. Total pancreatectomy or secondary diabetes mellitus caused by chronic pancreatitis; vii. Diabetic patients in the perioperative period; if you are one of the above, please accept your doctor’s advice and try to receive insulin, a more beneficial treatment option for your health.