Low morning BG

paulgwilson

Newbie
Messages
3
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi,

My son was diagnosed with Type 1 about a month ago. We are getting to grips with things now but his BG in the morning is always on the low side. He currently takes one dose of Levemir at night which is 6 units and Novarapid during the day. His morning BG is usually around 4. Does this levemir dose seem okay for a 10 year old, weighs 32kg?

Also does the novarapid say in the morning have a knock on effect on levels for the rest of the day?

I will speak to his nurse again, she has already indicated if his dose was lowered any more it would need to be split.

Thanks.
 

Rokaab

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,159
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Does this levemir dose seem okay for a 10 year old, weighs 32kg?
Unfortunately everyone is different, and finding the correct dose is most definitely a case of trial and error.
The rules on these forums say we are not allowed to advise on dosages - which is correct as the wrong advise could do harm

I would definitely talk to his nurse again and see what is suggested, and hope you get something sorted

Though note often Levemir is taken as split doses anyway as I believe for many does not last for 24 hours (at least for adults - dunno about children)
 
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In Response

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,370
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
The purpose of basal/long acting insulin such as Levemir is to keep our levels stable in the absence of food, exercise, fast acting insulin, etc., such as overnight.
So whether a morning BG level in the 4s is ok depends what his level was when he went to bed. If he went to bed with a BG in the 4s, Levemir is doing it’s job. If he went to bed with a BG in the 8s or 9s, his levels are dropping too far and his Levemir dose is likely to be too high.
That said, it is often recommended to go to bed with levels on the higher side to provide a bit of leeway in case they drop overnight. It is not usually recommended to go to bed with levels in the 4s. Often, levels around 8 are suggested.

The profile for short acting insulin such as NovoRapid shows that typically (we are all slightly different) it remains active for about 4 hours. After this, it has no (or very little) affect on BG levels. So a NovoRapid dose for breakfast is unlikely to have an affect at lunchtime and beyond. If you find your son’s levels are dropping during the day, this is further evidence the Levemir dose is too high as it will be the only active insulin at that time.

As @Rokaab says, the forum does not allow members to advise on medication doses as we are not doctors. So, my advice is to talk to your son’s nurse about how and when to reduce his insulin dose. It is useful to learn the basics as doses rarely remain stable for long so we need to learn about adjusting doses. I appreciate it is still early days for you so don’t expect to know everything.
 
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