December 7, 2003
Family Planning
Question from Croatia:
I have type 1 for 13 years and I’m 7 weeks pregnant. I read everywhere that during your first trimester, insulin need is lower. As soon as I got pregnant, I had to take much more insulin than usual and I’m wondering is it normal. I normally use insulin 5 times a day: Novorapid (NovoLog) 10+8+8 and Insulatard (Novolin) 10+14. Since I got pregnant I use Novorapid (NovoLog) 16+16+12 and Insulatard (Novolin) 12+16. I even have to take Novorapid about 6 units at 4 AM because I have frequent morning highs which is probably the dawn phenomenon. My BG’s are in the normal range now but I’m worried because I never used so much insulin in my life.
Answer:
Insulin requirements in the first trimester will vary and everyone is different. An increased insulin requirement just indicates that you are producing specific placental hormones that block the action of insulin. In fact, your insulin requirement will probably continue to gradually increase during the course of the pregnancy. I have frequently had patients who are taking more than 100 units/day. This a normal phenomenon.
OWJ
