October 5, 2008
Daily Care, Insulin Analogs
Question from Tehran, Iran:
My two-year-old son has had diabetes for 15 months. I give him glargine (Lantus) once a day and give him small amounts of food throughout the day to try to keep his blood sugar between 100 mg/dl [5.6 mmol/L] and 200 mg/dl [11.1 mmol/L]. But, his blood sugars can be as low as 70 mg/dl [3.9 mmol/L] and as high as 350 mg/dl [19.4 mmol/L]. Is it okay to give him rapid acting insulin such as NovoRapid?
Answer:
I use rapid acting insulin on children his age, but very carefully. Many times, it only takes one or two units with the meal. If you can visit a nutritionist and learn about carbohydrate counting, it would be a good idea. Be careful as the rapid acting can bring the glucose down very fast and to very low levels. Make sure you discuss this with the doctor who is treating your son’s diabetes.
LD
