Basal insulin and no sleep

[MMonck]

I'm Type 1 and on Novo Rapid (bolus) and Lantus (basal). I have been advised by docs that basal should be injected within a certain window of time before going to bed (think it was around 30 minutes), which got me thinking, what if for whatever reason, I don't sleep? Say if I'm working a night or go on a night out (a long one!) or I'm ill or something and so am up all night, how should I alter my basal if at all?

Matthew

 

[noblehead]

I'm Type 1 and on Novo Rapid (bolus) and Lantus (basal). I have been advised by docs that basal should be injected within a certain window of time before going to bed (think it was around 30 minutes)

No that's quite right, you can take your lantus any-time of the day as long as you keep to that time each day, however there's is some flexibility and being an hour early/late shouldn't make that much difference.

I was on lantus up until early last year, I use to take it before bed but moved it back to around 6pm on the advice of my DSN, she said it didn't matter when you take lantus as long as there was a gap of 24 hours between doses and the dose kept your bg levels steady.

 

[tim2000s]

According to my nurse, regardless of whether you sleep or not, it's to do with lowering your fasting blood glucose levels - so if you're not eating for a few hours, the basal will help gradually bring the numbers down!

That's not really the point of basal insulin. Basal insulin is designed to provide a background level of insulin that stops your blood glucose levels increasing as a result of natural glucose producing processes that take place all the time in our bodies. It should be used to keep levels flat when in a fasted state, but not to lower it. Your nurse has it slightly wrong...

 

[Kristin251]

Basal is not intended to work on food but it does. As Tim said it is designed to keep us steady away from food. I take mine before bed now (3 to 4 ) hours away from my novolog or I will hypo. When I first started lantus I took it with dinner and always dropped. Now I use bolus only for dinner and try to put at least 3 hours in between all insulins.

 

[Gaztheoldpunk]

Mmm... when I first started basal (lantus solostar) I took it in the evening and then spent the rest of the night hypo!! So I now take it 6am every morning before work, tho I don't do breakfast and I'm fine on it.. have my dinner at noon, then tea about six.

 

[Kristin251]

At DX they only put me on lantus, who knows why no bolus but I would be around 200at dinner, take lantus and drop to 125 within an hour. They had some crazy idea that I should eat to 200 and then cover it with lantus. Not a good plan. Then I took 5 units and I am down to 1 and even that can drop me. If I take lantus too close to novolog OR eat after lantus I will drop.