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I was curious about this too. Hopefully someone with firsthand experience will correct me/add on to my comment. I hear about insulin a lot but I’ve never gotten

I was curious about this too. Hopefully someone with firsthand experience will correct me/add on to my comment. I hear about insulin a lot but I’ve never gotten an idea of how dosage works. What I found: 1 unit of insulin will cover 10g of carbohydrates [1] Humalog insulin comes in 3 mL (300 units) vials or 10 mL (1000 units) vials. [2] The list price of a Humalog U-100 10 mL (1,000 units) vial is $274.70 [3] In type 1 diabetes, most people need a total of 0.5 - 0.8 units of insulin per kilogram of body weight each day. [4] In patients with type 2 diabetes, marked obesity, and insulin resistance, total daily insulin doses of 200 to 300 units are often required. In this setting, management for most patients includes a total of 1.0 to 2.0 units of insulin per kilogram per day; thus, in very obese patients, a larger total dose is required. [5] In type 2 diabetes, the average weight is 96.5kg - 98.9kg. [6] The average American weight in 2020 was 181 lbs. So around 82kg. [7] With the above details, in type 2, about 100 - 200 units are needed per day. That’s $989 - $1978 per year. In type 1, $494 - $791. 1. https://www.medicalhomeportal.org/link/3822 https://www.medicalhomeportal.org/link/3822 2. https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-education/health-wellness-and-safety-resources/resources-for-parents-and-kids/managing-your-diabetes/chapter-five-taking-insulin https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/family-resources-educati... 3. https://www.lillypricinginfo.com/humalog https://www.lillypricinginfo.com/humalog 4. http://www.diabeticretinopathy.org.uk/prevention/insulindoseinsulin.htm http://www.diabeticretinopathy.org.uk/prevention/insulindose... 5. https://www.patientcareonline.com/view/insulin-dosing-how-high-can-you-go https://www.patientcareonline.com/view/insulin-dosing-how-hi... 6. https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/29/3/493 https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/29/3/493 7. https://news.gallup.com/poll/328241/americans-average-weight-holds-steady-2020.aspx https://news.gallup.com/poll/328241/americans-average-weight...

CollinEMac 5y ago
"1 unit of insulin will cover 10g of carbohydrates" This varies significantly from patient to patient actually. The same goes for basal rates (how much insulin you need to maintain a healthy blood glucose level excluding what you eat). As you mentioned, weight is a big factor but so are other things like age, sex, diet, activity level, stress level, and just how well your body reacts to the insulin. Some people respond very well to artificial insulin while others just don't for some reason. I believe it can also depend on how long you've been using insulin. Your body can slowly stop responding as well as it used to. The numbers you came up with as an average sound pretty reasonable, but it's important to remember that daily dosage will vary quite a bit between individuals.
- ska 5y ago
  This is the part I had trouble finding any quantification of (not that I looked properly).

CollinEMac 5y ago

"1 unit of insulin will cover 10g of carbohydrates" This varies significantly from patient to patient actually. The same goes for basal rates (how much insulin you need to maintain a healthy blood glucose level excluding what you eat). As you mentioned, weight is a big factor but so are other things like age, sex, diet, activity level, stress level, and just how well your body reacts to the insulin. Some people respond very well to artificial insulin while others just don't for some reason. I believe it can also depend on how long you've been using insulin. Your body can slowly stop responding as well as it used to. The numbers you came up with as an average sound pretty reasonable, but it's important to remember that daily dosage will vary quite a bit between individuals.

ska 5y ago
This is the part I had trouble finding any quantification of (not that I looked properly).