Want help determining how to calculate your need for insulin? First, be sure to check with your doctor but you can also use Insulin Pumper's insulin calculating tool to better understand how your doctor might determine your need for insulin.
Medical Encyclopedia
Insulin
therapy
Conventional vs. Intensive
Insulin Therapy
Insulin Delivery Devices
Insulin information
History of Insulin
Types
of Insulin
Reactions to Insulin
What is insulin?
What is insulin used for?
Cautions
Side Effects of Insulin
Interactions
How is insulin manufactured?
Contents of Insulin
Action of Commonly Prescribed Insulin (chart)
The right insulin therapy can reduce the risk of long-term complications
Description of Types of Injected Insulin
Available
-- Animal insulin
-- Chemically modified
insulins
-- Non-hexameric insulins
-- Aspart insulin
-- Lispro insulin
-- Shifted isoelectric point insulin
-- Glargine insulin
-- Detemir insulin
-- Inhaled Insulin
Rapid or Fast-Acting Insulin
Sometimes also called "mealtime insulin"
Insulin is a hormone normally produced in the body by the beta islets cells of the pancreas that aids in the processing of food into energy that the body can use. There are many types of insulin.
Definition: Rapid or fast-acting insulin refers to a type of insulin that works quickly, or rapidly, in the body. Rapid or fast-acting insulins are insulin analogues (man-made) that are used to treat diabetes mellitus and include:
- Apidra ( glulisine)
- Humalog (Humalog Pen, Lispro-PFC, insulin-lispro)
- NovoLog (NovoRapid, aspart [rDNA origin])
Rapid or fast-acting insulin begins to work about 5 minutes after injection or bolus with an insulin pump. It peaks at about 1 hour and continues to work for 2 to 4 hours. Because it begins to work so quickly rapid acting insulin (not the same as "rapid insulin") it may also be referred to as "mealtime insulin."
Rapid, or fast-acting insulins are clear in color.
All persons with the juvenile form of type 1 diabetes need to take insulin to live.