Question:
I have a friend who has been recently diagnosed as a diabetic. His
endocrinologist has put him on an Humulin R and N regimen. The endo. claims
that it does not matter whether my friend is type 1 or 2, since his diabetes
is under excellent control.
My friend and I would like to know: If she is a type 2 diabetic, then is
there an advantage to using non-insulin medication?
Answer:
Typically if the doctor is uncertain about the patient's diagnosis (T1 or T2) then the doctor will
put the patient on oral meds and THEN insulin if necessary. Its very unusualy for a doc to go to
insulin right away unless he's certain the patient is T1. When I was first diagnosed because of my
age and weight it was very unclear whether I was T1 or T2. I started on orals for a while, went
very uncontrolled for about a year and then put on insulin and am now under very good control. I
wouldn't recommend going to insulin right away though because I've read about possible hardening of
the arteries from excess levels of insulin (this happens when the patient is producing his own
insulin AND injecting insulin) and lifestyle concerns. For me, insulin is the only thing that has
ever controlled my diabetes but many T2s here have a lot of success with diet and orals. I'm quite
suprised that this doc didn't push diet and orals if he's unsure about diagnosis.
Beanie, Type I (Humalog and Ultralente)
