What Insulins Can Be Mixed And Why?

The rapid-acting insulins,

Lispro, Aspart and Regular

, can be mixed with the longer acting NPH insulin. Glargine cannot be mixed with any other insulin.

Which insulin should never be mixed?

Some insulins, like glargine (Lantus®) and detemer (Levemir®), cannot be mixed. Other insulins (

NovoLog 70/30®

, Humalog 75/25®) are already a combination of two types of insulin and should not be mixed. Wash your hands with warm water and soap. Dry your hands.

Why do we mix insulin?

Using two types of insulin can help you

keep your blood sugar levels

in your target range. When you mix two insulins in one syringe, one type of insulin is always clear and short or rapid-acting, while the other type is cloudy and long-acting.

Why do you mix clear before cloudy insulin?

Always,

draw “clear before cloudy” insulin into the syringe

. This is to prevent cloudy insulin from entering the clear insulin bottle. Always do this procedure in the correct order, as shown in the following sequence. Roll the bottle of the cloudy insulin between your hands to mix it.

When do you give mixed insulin?

When rapid-acting insulin is mixed with either an intermediate- or long-acting insulin, the mixture should be injected

within 15 min before a meal

. Mixing of short-acting and lente insulins is not recommended except for patients already adequately controlled on such a mixture.

Which insulin do you draw up first?

When you mix

regular insulin

with another type of insulin, always draw the regular insulin into the syringe first. When you mix two types of insulins other than regular insulin, it does not matter in what order you draw them into the syringe.

Can Humalog be mixed with regular insulin?

Yes, they can be mixed

; however, there is no real reason why you would want to mix the two as they are both short-acting insulins. If you do need to mix regular and lispro insulin, draw up the lispro insulin first to prevent clouding.

Is regular insulin clear or cloudy?

What type of syringe is used for insulin?

0.3 mL syringes

are for insulin doses under 30 units of insulin and are numbered at 1-unit intervals. 0.5 mL syringes are for 30 to 50 units of insulin and are numbered at 1-unit intervals. 1.0 mL are for doses more than 50 units of insulin and are numbered at 2 units per interval.

Do you shake insulin?

Do not shake the bottle

. This can make the insulin clump. Clear insulin does not need to be mixed. If the insulin vial has a plastic cover, take it off.

How do you mix clear and cloudy insulin?

1. Step 1: Roll and clean. ​ …
2. Step 2: Add air to cloudy (intermediate-acting) insulin. ​ …
3. Step 3: Add air to clear (short-acting) insulin. ​ …
4. Step 4: Withdraw clear (short-acting) insulin first, then cloudy (intermediate-acting) insulin. ​

Why do we draw up regular insulin first?

The rapid- or short-acting insulin (clear) is drawn up first

to prevent the intermediate-acting insulin (cloudy) from getting into the rapid-

or short-acting insulin bottle and affecting the onset, peak, and duration.

What happens if insulin is taken after food?

Research shows that the best time to take a mealtime insulin is 15 to 20 minutes before you eat a meal. You can also take it after your meal, but this may put you at a higher risk of

a hypoglycemic episode

. Don't panic if you forget to take your insulin before your meal.

What blood sugar level requires insulin?

Insulin is usually recommended as the initial therapy for diabetes if a person's HbA1c level at

diagnosis is greater than 10%

or if someone's fasting blood glucose level is consistently above 250 mg/dl.

When should insulin never be administered?

But if you use shorter-acting or mealtime insulin, check your blood sugar prior to a meal and then give yourself the proper amount of insulin shortly before eating. And

if you skip a meal

, you shouldn't administer insulin. Only your doctor can determine what the right insulin schedule is for you.