I have taken r and n since diagnosis as a kid. after seeing an endo for the first time in many years, she decided that i should go with lispro and lantus. i was just curious as to your experiences with making this switch. pros and cons…?
I was really happy to make the switch from NPH/R to Humalog and Lantus. The Lantus worked pretty well as a steady basal insulin. It is not supposed to have a peak, but I found that 6-8 hours after I gave it, I’d have a little bit of a peak. The Lantus being steadier than the NPH will help avoid some lows and give you a little bit more flexibility about meal times and if there are any delays. Both the Humalog and the Lantus worked quite well. Good luck.
Point of clarification…
You are using N as in NPH, the stuff from pigs and cows ?!?!?!
Stuart
That was then, this is now. R is Regular, straight off the train. Originally from animals but now available in a synthesized form. NPH was invented in the late 20s I believe and originally was a modification made to animal R to create an long acting insulin (although it is actually more of an intermediate). You will no longer find animal based insulins in the US. N and R are both human insulins made from in an industrial process using bacteria that have been genetically modified to produce biologically identical human insulin. The same NPH modification is still used today. That is the current source of R and N.
No animals were harmed in the production of this description.
Moving from NPH to Lantus, well, there are only ups as far as I’m concerned!!! You’ll no longer be a slave to it by having to eat at specific times of the day to avoid lows. Afternoon and overnight also tend to be a lot smoother overall. You’ll probably have to play with the dosing for a bit though.
I also think you will like Humalog over R, but you may have to adjust the timing. I usually go with about 20 min before a meal vs 45+ on R. Humalog doesn’t act immediately, but it is a lot faster than R so you want to watch for lows. You may even need to take less if you were over-bolusing on R in order to help get more insulin in your system quickly. The greatest benefit for active people, though, is that it doesn’t hang around as long. the danger of lows goes down dramatically after 3-4.5 hours vs like 6 on R.