Where Manufactured “Human” Insulin Comes In

Insulin and Type 2 Diabetes: What You Should Know

The goal of taking insulin injections is to mimic your body’s normal insulin response. People who take insulin eventually need a combination of rapid- or short-acting and long-acting insulins to mimic normal insulin function and to control blood glucose.

A normal pancreas releases insulin constantly, not just when you eat, says John Walsh, P.A., CDE, coauthor of Using Insulin (Torrey Pines Press, 2003). Adults produce about 1 unit of insulin per hour. This is called basal insulin or background insulin.

In response to food, insulin is released from the pancreas in two phases:

1. The first burst occurs within 15 minutes of your first bite in response to rising blood glucose.

2. The second phase happens more slowly, over the next one-and-a-half to three hours, to match the rise in blood glucose from the food you ate, which is called bolus insulin or mealtime insulin.