Flexible Insulin Therapy

Flexible Insulin Therapy (FIT) is a different way of thinking about your diabetes care. FIT allows you to adjust the timing and amount of insulin to meet your needs.

For example, you may correct your meal-time bolus insulin doses up or down to reflect such things as 1) your current blood glucose level, 2) the carbohydrates you plan to eat, and 3) the exercise that you plan to do.

Flexible insulin therapy is possible because today's rapid-acting insulins are injected at the exact time you eat, not 30 minutes before. Since you inject right at mealtime, you can make spontaneous food choices at a meal, then adjust the insulin dose to reflect the grams of carb that you actually eat.

Some people use the names 'Flexible Insulin Therapy' and 'Intensive Insulin Therapy' to mean the same thing. 


Is Flexible Therapy Right For You?

Could the extra steps of flexible therapy work for you? Answer these questions to find out:

• Are you enthusiastic and motivated to keep your blood glucose in target?
  
  
• Are you willing to make an extra effort to avoid the health complications of diabetes?
  
  
• Are you willing to calculate insulin dose corrections based on counting the carbohydrates that you eat?
  
  
• Are you willing to check your blood glucose at least four times a day?
  
  
• Can you inject insulin at least three times a day? 
  
  
• Can you fill out a daily blood glucose and insulin diary?

If you answered, "Yes" to most of these questions, ask your doctor about FIT. To see if you are able to handle the extra work, your doctor may ask you to do four blood glucose tests a day for a month, and to keep a diary of your test results and insulin doses.

There is a greater risk of hypoglycemia with FIT, so it's not for everyone. It should be used cautiously with children under the age of 13 years, and for people who have:

• Recurrent hypoglycemia (low blood glucose).
  
  
• Hypoglycemia Unawareness (in which one does not experience the symptoms of low blood glucose)
  
  
• Advanced kidney disease, eye disease, or nerve disease
  
  
• A prior history of heart disease or stroke

Read about flexible injection plans >