Long acting Insulin

[keith j donnelly]

Whilst it's easy to calculate the amount of Rapid Insulin to use. As it's related to the carbs consumed.
What is the accepted calculation for Long Acting Insulin. Levermir in my case. What considerations should be used.

 

[Deleted member 527103]

There is no basal equivalent to carb ratio.
The right amount of basal is whatever you need to keep your BG stable in the absence of anything else that affects your BG such as food, exercise or stress.
You will find a huge variation of basal needs from person to person just like there is a huge variation of insulin to carb ratios.
You need as much basal as you need.

 

[keith j donnelly]

Whilst it's straight forward calculating the amount of units to use, by carb counting.
What procedure do you use for calculation of Long Acting Insulin.
I use Levermir at around 40units in the morning. Rapid is more flexible depending on the usual parameters.
I've asked previously but never had a feedback

 

[Antje77]

Whilst it's easy to calculate the amount of Rapid Insulin to use. As it's related to the carbs consumed.
What is the accepted calculation for Long Acting Insulin. Levermir in my case. What considerations should be used.

Hi @keith j donnelly , You might want to look into basal testing.
The amount of basal someone needs can only be found through trial and error.
A helpful tool with this is basal testing, which basically means you fast or eat no carbs for part of the day to see if your basal dose keeps you steady in the absence of food or quick acting insulin.

With Levemir, you may find that it doesn't cover 24 hours. If so, you might want to speak with your team about splitting the dose.

I don't have any good links at hand, but if you do a google search on basal testing insulin you'll find multiple useful articles.

Good luck!

 

[EllieM]

Hi @keith j donnelly and welcome to the forums.

As the others have said, you need as much as you need, and some people find they need to split the dose.

Can I ask how long you've been diabetic (am assuming T1 since you also posted this question in the T1 forum?) and what help your team have given you on basal testing?

Quite an informative article about levemir here

Levemir and Dosage: Forms, Strength, How to Use, and More

Levemir is used to help manage blood sugar levels in adults and some children with diabetes. Learn about this drug’s dosage, forms, strength, and more.

www.healthline.com

We aren't allowed to give specific advice on dosing on these forums, but we can give useful links and describe our own experiences.

And my own experience with a different basal (lantus) is that my basal needs can change with time and other factors (including weather, exercise, illness) so you do need to be able to adjust your basal occasionally.