Insulin

If you are ill, you should check your urine for ketones (acetone), and notify your doctor if the test is positive. This condition can be life-threatening.

Why should Insulin not be prescribed?

Insulin should be used only to correct diabetic conditions.

Special warnings about Insulin

Wear personal identification that states clearly that you are diabetic. Carry a sugar-containing product such as hard candy to offset any symptoms of low blood sugar.

Do not change the type of insulin or even the model and brand of syringe or needle you use without your physician's instruction. Failure to use the proper syringe may lead to improper dosage levels of insulin.

If you become ill from any cause, especially with nausea and vomiting or fever, your insulin requirements may change. It is important to eat as normally as possible. If you have trouble eating, drink fruit juices, soda, or clear soups, or eat small amounts of bland foods. Test your urine and/or blood sugar and tell your doctor at once. If you have severe and prolonged vomiting, seek emergency medical care.

If you are taking insulin, you should check your glucose levels with home blood and urine testing devices. If your blood tests consistently show above-normal sugar levels or your urine tests consistently show the presence of sugar, your diabetes is not properly controlled, and you should tell your doctor.

To avoid infection or contamination, use disposable needles and syringes or sterilize your reusable syringe and needle carefully.

Always keep handy an extra supply of insulin as well as a spare syringe and needle.

Possible food and drug interactions when taking Insulin

Follow your physician's dietary guidelines as closely as you can and inform your physician of any medication, either prescription or non-prescription, that you are taking. Specific medications, depending on the amount present, that affect insulin levels or its effectiveness include:

• ACE inhibitors such as the blood pressure medications benazepril and quinapril
• Anabolic steroids
• Appetite suppressants such as diethylpropion
• Aspirin
• Beta-blocking blood pressure medicines such as atenolol and metoprolol
• Diuretics such as furosemide and hydrochlorothiazide
• Epinephrine
• Estrogens
• Isoniazid
• Major tranquilizers such as chlorpromazine and thioridazine
• MAO inhibitors (drugs such as the antidepressants phenelzine and tranylcypromine)
• Niacin
• Octreotide
• Oral contraceptives
• Oral drugs for diabetes such as chlorpropamide and tolbutamide
• Phenytoin
• Steroid medications such as prednisone
• Sulfa antibiotics such as sulfamethoxazole
• Thyroid medications such as levothyroxine