[Ronin]

Hi Lottadata!

Okay, one for the qualified-no category.

I tend to agree on the MD issue. However, I think it it more the hubris (and lack of training/experience) of most MD's when it comes to adults developing diabetes -- the first presumption is that you have to be both Insulin Resistant and Type-2. A good friend suffered through about three years of a mis-diagnosis until a friend turned him on to the C-Peptide test, where he found that his level was 0.5! He's now using insulin and is in great shape. MD's only assume that they know everything.

I also agree with your advice on when to begin the use of insulin. I've been testing for a few years now and see a slow, but definite, trend upwards. However my A1c's remain okay, but I like to do my reshearch ahead of time so that I know what to do when the time comes to make a choice.

Thanks for your additions to this thread. About the shelf-life question -- just how long does a vial/insulin pen/whatever last?

[Larry H.]

Personally I intend to avoid pharmaceutical products as long as possible. Your numbers appear to be rather reasonable for the prevention methods your using. Every day it seems we find yet another drug that everyone thinks is saving them is killing some of them. The longer we can avoid that situation the better in my opinion. I already take enough drugs for my heart conditions. As a matter a fact I was looking at the papers they give with your prescriptions and reading the side effects. Somehow I had never noticed before but three of the four I am taking say the "increase" glucose levels and should be monitored by diabetics. There is no diabetes in our family, and I seem to have become diabetic prone after my bypass surgery. Now I am wondering if the med's I take for that might be helping to cause my higher sugar numbers I am seeing.