This type of insulin provides a gentle continuous supply of insulin, even when asleep. Examples are:
Medium acting e.g. Insulatard, Humulin I. These are cloudy in appearance
Long Acting Insulin: these are taken before going to bed. e.g. Glargine, (can be called Lantus), Detemir (can be called Levemir). These are clear in appearance
This type of provides a boost of insulin to control glucose produced by the meal. This pattern of insulin secretion is produced naturally in people who do not have diabetes. Examples are:
Rapid Acting (analogue) Insulin: this can be injected up to 5 minutes before a meal, during or up to 5minutes after your meal e.g. Novorapid, Humalog
Short acting e.g. Actrapid, Humulin S
Usually taken twice a day and this insulin system has very limited flexibility as the insulin and meals need to be at set times each day.
Pre-mixed e.g. Mixtard 30, Humulin M3
Pre-mixed with analogue e.g. Novomix 30, Humalog Mix 25 or 50
Ask the specialist diabetes team if you need more information