#1755 Defining Diabetes: Lantus Lows
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Scott and Jenny define "Lantus Lows" in this Defining Diabetes episode.
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DISCLAIMER: This text is the output of AI based transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors and should not be treated as an authoritative record. Nothing that you read here constitutes advice medical or otherwise. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making changes to a healthcare plan.
Scott Benner (0:0) Welcome back, friends, to another episode of the Juice Box podcast. (0:15) Managing diabetes is difficult, but trying to do it when you don't understand the lingo, that's almost impossible. (0:22) The defining diabetes series began in 2019, and today we're adding to it. (0:26) Go to juiceboxpodcast.com up in the menu, click on defining diabetes, and you'll see a complete list of all the terms that we've defined so far. (0:37) If this is your first time listening to the Juice Box podcast and you'd like to hear more, download Apple Podcasts or Spotify, really any audio app at all.
Scott Benner (0:46) Look for the Juice Box podcast and follow or subscribe. (0:49) We put out new content every day that you'll enjoy. (0:53) Wanna learn more about your diabetes management? (0:55) Go to juiceboxpodcast.com up in the menu and look for bold beginnings, the diabetes pro tip series, and much more. (1:02) This podcast is full of collections and series of information that will help you to live better with insulin.
Scott Benner (1:11) While you're listening, please remember that nothing you hear on the Juice Box podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. (1:19) Always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan or becoming bold with insulin. (1:30) Jenny, is the term Lantus Low a common thing that you hear?
Jenny Smith (1:35) Lantus Low.
Scott Benner (1:36) Lantus Low. (1:37) This is one of the things people want to find. (1:40) So what do they mean? (1:41) Are they talking about, like, their blood sugars just kept getting keep getting dragged down by basal?
Jenny Smith (1:46) That's what I would expect would be the definition because you can't you know, Lantus being a long acting insulin, it's dosed typically once a day. (1:58) It's supposed to be a twenty four hour acting insulin. (2:00) Mhmm. (2:01) Of the previous types of intermediate acting insulins, Lantus was huge because it had a much more plateaued effect for twenty four hours compared compared to the cloudy intermediates, which had a peak and a drop. (2:16) Right?
Jenny Smith (2:16) But Lantus low, I would expect, could come from two places. (2:22) Usually, we would do basal evaluation to note whether the dose is right or not by looking at overnight.
Scott Benner (2:28) Okay.
Jenny Smith (2:29) So regardless of whether you dose your basal Lantus in the morning or the evening, we would evaluate the overnight to determine if the dose is too heavy, if it's pulling your blood sugar down, a Lantus low, in an environment where there's no IOB from rapid insulin or food intake or whatever, then the dose would need to be adjusted because the basal's job isn't to pull you down.
Scott Benner (2:52) Yeah.
Jenny Smith (2:52) Right? (2:53) Daytime too, you know, if you ever skipped a meal or whatever on MDI, having basal as dialed in with Lantus or any of the basal injectables is beneficial because, sure, it could drop your blood sugar if the dose is not right. (3:09) But Lantus low, that's interesting. (3:11) I've I guess I've never heard it put together as a term.
Scott Benner (3:14) Yeah. (3:14) I haven't either, but it was it was brought up by enough people that it made it on the list. (3:18) And I saw some examples of, I went low overnight for my basil. (3:23) Somebody said Lantus is peaking. (3:25) Do they does it maybe burn a little brighter sometimes, or do they think it's stronger in the beginning than at the end maybe?
Scott Benner (3:32) Is that maybe how they're thinking of it?
Jenny Smith (3:33) Yes. (3:34) In terms of it's supposed to be a plateau type of basal insulin.
Scott Benner (3:38) Yeah.
Jenny Smith (3:39) But, again, person to person, we all know things work a little bit differently. (3:44) For me, I mean, I Lantus was my transition to a long acting basil coming off of that cloudy intermediate. (3:52) And for me, I can say that had I not adjusted it and also always had a nighttime snack
Scott Benner (4:01) Mhmm.
Jenny Smith (4:02) I would have been consistently low during the overnight time. (4:07) Okay. (4:08) So is there a peaking time? (4:11) Not like the intermediate insulins, but there could be a time period where it seems to really work heavier.
Scott Benner (4:19) Yeah.
Jenny Smith (4:19) I do know that another piece to Lantus is that while being a twenty four hour acting insulin, for some people, it peters out at the very end hours. (4:30) Like, it only lasts really about twenty hours, not truly twenty four hours Yeah. (4:34) Which isn't a low issue, but could be where you might adjust, and then you end up having lows to beat the end.
Scott Benner (4:42) I don't know. (4:42) What if you had a very sedentary job and you're active on the weekends, but you shot the same amount every day? (4:47) Like, maybe that would feel like and I guess it would be true. (4:50) Right? (4:51) Like, during the activity, it'd be like, oh, the basils.
Scott Benner (4:54) Would be easy for somebody to say my basal insulin's pulling me down instead of thinking my activity is making me lower. (4:59) Like, you could see you know what I mean?
Jenny Smith (5:01) Yeah. (5:01) And for women during cycle time, I know when I was on Lantus, I had two doses.
Scott Benner (5:08) Mhmm.
Jenny Smith (5:09) I had a dose for the time period after my period started and up until kind of mid cycle or until, like, that week before my next cycle was expected to start. (5:20) I had a dose that, in general
Scott Benner (5:22) Yeah.
Jenny Smith (5:22) Worked as well as it could. (5:24) Right? (5:24) And then I had a dose for that week before that was three units higher.
Scott Benner (5:29) Okay.
Jenny Smith (5:30) I still remember the doses because
Scott Benner (5:33) It's like
Jenny Smith (5:33) kinda funny how you remember
Scott Benner (5:34) those things. (5:35) Right? (5:35) My mind. (5:36) So okay. (5:36) I guess if you're seeing somebody use this online, this is one of the things they're trying to convey.
Scott Benner (5:41) They had a low overnight. (5:42) They think it's basal related. (5:44) I would probably try to ask those people to maybe zoom out a little more and see the other things that are affecting them. (5:51) I think it's possible if you don't find yourself blaming the basal insulin, you might find the The variables that are variables
Jenny Smith (5:58) that creating.
Scott Benner (5:59) That are at hand. (5:59) Yes. (6:00) Anyway Mhmm. (6:00) Well, there's one I never heard before. (6:01) So
Jenny Smith (6:01) thanks Great. (6:02) For Me either. (6:02) Thank you.
Scott Benner (6:03) I don't know if we defined it, but I think we tried to figure it out. (6:12) Okay. (6:12) Well, here we are at the end of the episode. (6:14) You're still with me? (6:15) Thank you.
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