[Rob43]

Hi, Can Humalog cause kidney damage? My doctor has put me on Humalog shots three times a day before meals just after month of taking one insulin shot a night before going to bed. Now I'm on four insulin shots a day.

Thanks, Rob

[Jill-O]

I'll be interested to hear responses. I'd not heard that it could cause damage and I use it, too.

[REDLAN]

where did you get this information from?

from pubmed 1999 study looking at the safety of Insulin lispro (humalog)

Safety of insulin lispro: pooled data from clinica...[Am J Health Syst Pharm. 1999] - PubMed Result

they concluded that there was no statistical significant difference between the development and progression of nephropathy, between humalog and humalin R (mind you this is Eli Lilly's own research)

I could not find any information indicating that humalog caused kidney damage - the only recent study material I could find related to it's use with patients with kidney failure - and these studies concluded that humalog's action was unaffected.

[Rob43]

I have friend that was on Humalog shots and she said it can cause kidney damage over time taking it that what her diabetic doctor said. She at one time weighed over 300 lbs and was taking insulin shots and now she off of the shots. I'm wondering if taking insulin is worse then not taking insulin and just reduce what you eat instead.

Thanks, Rob

[Scratch]

I'd say it's far more likely to prevent kidney damage with its effect of lowering blood sugars.

[xMenace]

It's NOT taking Humalog tht causes the damage.

The worse thing you can do is have high blood sugar levels. Take the insulin and get under control. If you have weight to lose and diet to overhaul, do that too, but don't go off the insulin until you see the need drop. Test regularly.

[DCaplinger]

As much as I hate medicine in general, I have to agree here. Taking insulin might be a risk factor in kidney damage, however, the risk would pale in comparison to the damage that elevated blood sugars would cause.

Regards,

[xMenace]

I have heard many uninformed diabetics over the years blame things on their insulin: 'the insulin is causing me to lose feeling in my feet' or 'insulin makes me gain weight' or 'insulin does this, that, and the other thing' Unfortunately, many diabetics have no clue what the disease is all about. I watched once as our regional tv news interviewed a lady struggling with complications. Everything was caused by insulin. I could have thown a brick at the tv The fact that you can use a computer to get here puts you in an elite category.

[Rob43]

Hi, My diabetic nurse at my local hospital said this insulin causes weight gain and I will never stop taking insulin shots for rest of my life. I was told by another doctor that if lose weight and change my eating habits I could get off of insulin shots. So owl is right or wrong?

Thanks, Rob

[Funnygrl]

Rob, my advice to you is to start reading about diabetes yourself. Start relying on information from your doctors or nuses or friends and read anything written about diabetes you can find.

I recommend "Using Insulin" and "Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year."

[JediSkipdogg]

The ONLY proven way that insulin has caused any damage is due to fluctuating BGs. That is the person uses insulin to bring them down and they either don't use it with food or skip it and their level shoots back up. Basically a continual roller coaster.

All of the other myths are totally unfounded.

As for taking it the rest of your life, generally that's true. If one is extremely overweight and that is the cause of their type 2 insulin resistance, then losing weight may help them get off of insulin. However, in most cases they will go back on as they get older and insulin resistance progresses (age alone causes insulin resistance in ALL people.)

Sounds like you need to find a new hospital that doesn't believe in urban myths.

[Rob43]

Your right these small town hospitals are not a place to go for treatment like diabetes. I will need to go a large hospital like St Thomas in Nashville for the best care. I had to go from here to St Thomas for a excellent eye doctor that knows about glaucoma. My past eye doctor here wanted me on eye drops for rest of life and doctor at St. Thomas said I didn't need them now and took me off of them.

Rob

[JediSurfer]

I have never heard of Humalog causing kidney damage. It was one of least favorite insulins to date but didn't do any damage. The diabetes itself has that particular slot to itself if left inappropriately treated.

[xMenace]

Originally Posted by Rob43

Hi, My diabetic nurse at my local hospital said this insulin causes weight gain and I will never stop taking insulin shots for rest of my life. I was told by another doctor that if lose weight and change my eating habits I could get off of insulin shots. So owl is right or wrong?

Thanks, Rob

What Jedi says is correct. Losing lots of weight may get you off, assuming you have lots of weight to lose.

Insulin does not cause weight gain, but a person taking insulin tendss to gain weight. If you have too much insulin in your body for your needs, you will want to and need to add food to offset it. Injected insulins are inefficient as they are absorbed through subcataneous tissues. They are not injected directly into your blood stream like your pancreas does. Our basal insulins are also very poorly aligned with our needs. It is almost a given that there are times you will need food that you don't really want to take any. There will also be lows you'll need to correct with food. That can lead to high sugars, more insulin, and even more food. It can be a vicious cycle. Excercising can be another curse for the same reason - you may need food to keep from hypoing.

Pumping offers much finer control, but it is not perfect.

Control your diet and exercise the best you can. If you can get an A1C under 6.5% you are very likely not gaining weight.

[Rob43]

My weight is 199 lbs and I'm 5-8 in height so my doctor said I need to lose 50lbs at least. So now I'm taking up the sport of bowling and working outside cutting down trees and in the spring starting a big garden. What do think about this?

Thanks, Rob