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Living with type 1 in hot countries

S

spake

Newbie
Messages
4
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hello!

I was wondering how do people deal with DT1 in countries with hot climate (Middle East, India, ...) since you're not supposed to expose the insulin to temperatures higher than 25 degrees celsius. Do they have to keep insulin in the fridge or do they have another strategy?

Thanks!
 
Yes, it is kept in the fridge in these countries. However, 25 degrees celsius is no issue. Higher than 35 is.
 
I understand you're supposed to store your insulin in the fridge whatever country you're in, except for the insulin that you're using in your pen/syringe. When travelling abroad I use my Frio wallet to keep it cool.
 
Living with diabetes is bad enough, the thought of living with it in a hot climate sounds like a total disaster.
 
Dodo said:
I understand you're supposed to store your insulin in the fridge whatever country you're in, except for the insulin that you're using in your pen/syringe. When travelling abroad I use my Frio wallet to keep it cool.
Click to expand...

This is in fact incorrect. In hot countries even the insulin in use should be kept in the fridge. Read more in this thread.
 
Most homes in hot countries will have air conditioning so the ambient room temperature won't differ much from that in UK homes; hence no need to refrigerate once in use.

When out and about Frio wallets can be helpful to keep insulin cool.
 
I live in a hot country.

I keep unopened insulin pens in the fridge but I keep one with me until it's empty then I take another one from the fridge.

I sometimes walk under the hot sun without AC of course but never had an issue with insulin efficacy.

Whenever you want to stay in a high temperature place for an extended time, you should carry ice packs with you to store the insulin.
 
cz_dave said:
This is in fact incorrect. In hot countries even the insulin in use should be kept in the fridge. Read more in this thread.
Click to expand...
Not living in a hot country I keep my insulin cool in the fridge, whilst the cartridge I'm using doesn't need to be (as per instructions on the insulin packaging), and have been doing so for the last 50 years. Using straight from the fridge can be more painful due to it being cold and room temperature is recommended.
 
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I think the main point is there is no harm in storing the insulin that's in use in the fridge. You have to store it somewhere, so why not in a cool place. If your home is not air conditioned, then the fridge makes most sense.
 
cz_dave said:
I think the main point is there is no harm in storing the insulin that's in use in the fridge. You have to store it somewhere, so why not in a cool place. If your home is not air conditioned, then the fridge makes most sense.
Click to expand...

I live in Turkey and use a pump. The insulin in my pump does not degrade over three days. Novorapid is quite stable. (Most people in Turkey do NOT have AC, btw). When I was on MDI I found Lantus was unstable, so I wouldn't carry it anywhere without an ice pack, but my Novorapid pens didn't degrade over the week to ten days that they lasted, even if I didn't put them in the fridge between uses.
As an aside, when living/traveling somewhere hot, you need to be very careful about putting your insulin in someone else's fridge. Because it can be too COLD. IME heat makes insulin degrade quite slowly, but freezing or near freezing temperatures ruin it straight away and you need to find a chemist. I think the 'diabetic' fridge needs to be a model of moderation.
 
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