Humulin or Lantus, Which Insulin For Your Child?

Humulin or Lantus? When my daughter, who was 8, was first diagnosed the Children's Hospital that was treating her put her on an insulin program of short acting Humalog NPH and long acting Humalin N. You should have seen me that first day of training after a long night in the emergency room where she was diagnosed. I was a raving lunatic to begin with so my brain was mostly mush at that point. Add to that everything began with "H". Mix this "H" with that "H" but first charge this "H" with air, then draw this "H" first followed by that "H" but make sure you roll this "H" between your palms and for crying-out-loud don't shake that "H". Anyway I guess osmosis worked and all of that information finally seeped in. We were officially diabetic now.

For those of you who may not be familiar with it, Humalog and Humalin (short and long acting insulins) are mixed in the same syringe and injected 3 times a day usually before meals. Your child is allowed a certain amount of carbohydrates for each meal that the doctor figures out based on age, weight, etc., and that's your number. My daughter's was 65 carbs max per meal and 35 max per snack. However your child hits their magic number that's it. Whether it's 65 slices of ham or half a pop-tart. Plus she had to eat 6 times a day at certain times everyday.

Well the time came when she decided she wanted a little more freedom of choice and asked me about trying Lantus. My first thought was if it's not broke don't fix it. But I can have a cupcake whenever I want so I decided my opinion was secondary. So we looked into it. Lantus is a long lasting insulin. One shot at night and she had a 24 hour basal dose of insulin. "One shot" I'm thinking to myself "that's great". But wait, you also have to take a shot of short acting insulin (a bolus) everytime you eat. 10 meals 10 shots, 3 meals, 3 shots. Even I could figure that out. You base the amount of short acting insulin on the number of carbs you are about to eat. Talk about freedom! Compared to what she had been doing it was like being re-born. she didn't care that it would mean more shots. All she heard was she could eat what she wanted when she wanted. Birthday cake, pizza parties, popcorn at the movies, boy she was ready to go. The first thing she wanted to have was a Blizzard from Dairy Queen. I looked at the chart on the wall and it read 125 carbohydrates. That was half a days carbs in a paper cup! After a couple of days of gluttony things got back to normal pretty quickly.

Remember that freedom I mentioned, it came at a price. This insulin regime is a lot of shots. Add those to the required blood tests and your talking about a lot of holes per day in a little girl. One more thing, her nighttime Lantus shot was 19 units. that's a lot of insulin all at once. In her case it went in like battery acid. These shots are no fun. However, after several months on the Lantus regime her life and the rest of my family's lives are pretty close to pre-diagnosis normal. All in all it was the right thing to do. If your doctor is suggesting Lantus or your child is asking about it, consider all of the above. We're glad we did it.

Russell Turner is the father of a 10 year old diabetic daughter. He realized early on that he could find all the medical information about diabetes he could ever need on the internet. What he couldn't find was information that told him how to keep his family's life normal after the diagnosis. He started his own website dedicated to just that. Visit http://www.mychildhasdiabetes.com Prepare you child for life with diabetes!

In The News:


Better Links Directory


Adult Onset Diabetes and Quacks

Adult onset diabetes, like the common ulcer of a few... Read More

Diabetes and Fitness

There are two main types of diabetes, type I and... Read More

Type I Diabetes: Insulin-Dependent Diabetes

Type I diabetes is also known as insulin-dependent diabetes or... Read More

Revolutionary Lancet Device for Diabetic Glucose Testing

Now you can reduce the pain and inconvenience of testing.... Read More

Discover the Positive Effects of Exercise for Diabetes Sufferers

There are two main types of diabetes, type I and... Read More

Raising Happy Diabetic Kids Part II

This is the second article in a series I am... Read More

Pre-Diabetes Awareness: Gamblers Understand the Odds

Do you gamble? Play Texas Hold'em poker, casino games, or... Read More

Exercise ? The Only Hope for Diabetes!

Why is it that the smallest paragraph in diabetes prevention... Read More

Humulin or Lantus, Which Insulin For Your Child?

Humulin or Lantus? When my daughter, who was 8, was... Read More

Diabetes... Sweet Story of Healing

In a time not too long ago, there lived a... Read More

Diabetes Symptoms, Causes & Types

Diabetes affects the manner in which the body handles carbohydrates,... Read More

Get More Out Of Life While Managing Your Diabetes

When I was first diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at... Read More

The Subconscious Diet Can Help Protect Your Child From Type 2 Diabetes

Until obesity became epidemic, type 2 diabetes was virtually unheard... Read More

Diabetes and Exercise - Just Move it!

While exercise and eating guidelines are based on good scientific... Read More

If You Have Diabetes, You May Be Entitled To No Cost Diabetic Supplies

This article is intended to inform people with diabetes in... Read More

Improper pH Balance Increases Risk and Damage of Diabetes

THE RISKBlood sugar balance is critical to your body's proper... Read More

Diabetes Awareness: Diabetes on the Job

When you go to work, your diabetes goes with you.You... Read More

Syndrome X - What Is It And Have You Got It?

Syndrome X or the X factor as it is sometimes... Read More

Insulin Resistance And Complex Carbohydrates

One of the biggest mistakes that weight loss failures make... Read More

Diabetic Frozen Shoulder. An Explanation of The Frozen Shoulder - Diabetes Connection?

Diabetic frozen shoulder is a major problem. The pain and... Read More

Diabetes and Glyconutrients

Today, most people with diabetes are only treating the symptoms.... Read More

Diabetes

The following information is for educational purposes only and is... Read More

Gestational Diabetes

Gestational diabetes is a temporary condition that occurs during pregnancy.... Read More

Diabetes Awareness: Will They Recognize You?

Imagine how it feels to look younger, feel younger, and... Read More

Raising Happy Diabetic Kids

This is the first in a series of articles I... Read More