Bolus Insulin

[Deleted member 391597]

Hi,

Sorry if this seems like a silly question but I am still waiting to see my consultant following diagnosis! I am doing pretty well with carb counting using the basal/bolus regime but had a question about bolus insulin.

If for example I was to go out for a meal, injected insulin to cover the carbs in my meal but decided after I had finished that I would like a dessert too (just like a "normal" person would have the flexibility to do!) Then would I be able to give myself an additional bolus injection for this too? I only wondered as I understand NovoRapid is active for some time after injecting so would it be possible to give yourself another injection to cover the extra carbs too?

Hope that makes sense! Thanks in advance.

 

[katmcd]

I carb count and yes, if I want a pudding, second helpings, etc that contain extra carbs from what I originally injected for then I just inject a little extra depending on how many carbs it is. One of the first questions I asked my dietician...'but what about seconds?'

 

[DaftThoughts]

Insulin can stack while the food metabolizes more slowly so be sure to test often when you inject more. If you ate a fat or protein heavy meal, your body won't process the carbs as fast. By the time you're getting to your dessert the insulin is slowly reaching its peak, between 45-90 minutes in. Injecting more can mean your body has more insulin than there is glucose in your blood. I've gone low once or twice due to this when deciding to have some dessert after dinner.

I recommend testing to see where your levels are at after dinner and before dessert. If you're already rising bolus for your dessert as normal. If you're actually dropping a bit take only half your bolus, then check again 1 and 2 hours in and adjust where needed.

 

[mentat]

Hi Hollieo4,

Basically, the only difference between injecting 8u in one go, and injecting 5u now and 3u in half an hour, is that in the second case the insulin will take longer to do its job. In many people this means a larger spike, but still coming down to the same place after several hours.

However, in certain individuals more complicated things occur. Some people seem to become "extra sensitive" to the second injection and don't need as much insulin for the same effect. Other people find that they need to add on a few extra units. This might be due to the immune system destroying part of the injected insulin.

So, by all means try it, but monitor your sugars and if there is a clear pattern then adjust for it.