Man Uses Insulin From Animals for Type 1 Wife

Type 1 and LADA
#1

This is a very wonderful story from the Diabetes Health magazine. A man in China extracted insulin from animals to keep his type 1 wife and many other people alive. during war time. The lady is still alive today, and she lectures and helps others.

http://diabeteshealth.com/read/2002/01/01/3495/evas-insulin/

#2

This is a very inspirational story. Thank you for posting it.

#3

Dlife made a video serie on Eva Saxl which is very good.

Eva Saxl

#4

Thanks Brian! I keep forgetting about Dlife. They used to have good discussions there for diabetes support, but the type 1 forum is almost nonexistent now.

#5

Thank you Richard, wonderful story.

#6

Thank you Brian...very well-done video. She seemed to stay so healthy all her life...nice encouragement for a newly dx'd.

#7

This is really inspiring. Gives us hope that we Type 1 or 2 that we can live a long and healthy life with Diabetes as long as we control it.

#8

This is a neat story

#9

If you recall Richard, you and me used insulin made from animals for the first chunks of our lives, at least until recombinant insulin became available in the 1980's. We didn't make the insulin from pork and beef pancreases ourselves, we let Lilly do that in Indianapolis (importantly, near Chicago a big cross-shipping point for meat trades).


I grew up in the Midwest near many meat packing plants (anywhere where important rail lines intersected had a lot of this industry) and the relation between the meat industry and insulin production was very prominent in local public relations advertising for the meat packing plants.

http://www.diabetesforecast.org/2013/jul/making-insulin.html

http://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/2013/11/two-tons-of-pig-parts-ma...

I myself used the animal-source insulins until the late 90's, and I don't think they were discontinued by Lilly until like 2005. They may still be available from some other sources.

#10

Hi Tim, Canada sold animal insulin after the US stopped. Now I believe Canada has stopped too. Some people in the US order it from Europe.