How to Inject Insulin

By eHow Health Editor

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Diabetes affects more than 20 million Americans and more than 320 million people worldwide. Since diabetes can be a life-threatening illness due to the many complications it can cause, it's important to approach treatment with accuracy. In addition to lifestyle and dietary modifications, it may become necessary to administer medications, including insulin. Depending on your prescription, you may inject insulin via syringe or an insulin pen. In either case, there are some basic things to know about how to inject insulin to treat your diabetes.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Step1

Roll a vial of insulin back and forth between the palms of your hands several times before filling the syringe. This will help to redistribute any particles that have settled so you get an even concentration in each dose. Do the same rolling process with prefilled syringes. However, insulin pens should be shaken up and down in addition to being rolled several times. This shaking down motion will trigger the glass ball inside the pen to mix the insulin thoroughly.

Step2

Pinch the skin of the injection site slightly and target the syringe (or pen) at either a 45 or 90 degree angle to make sure the insulin is injected under the fatty layer of the skin. Note that a 45 degree angle is best for children and those adults who are very thin.

Step3

Rotate injection sites, but not body parts as once recommended. Insulin is best absorbed through the abdomen, so rotating injection sites in this area is ideal. If it helps, visualize your abdomen as a grid containing 8 equal squares. Assign each square a day of the week and then rotate among them one at a time as you progress through the week.

Step4

Choose subsequent injection sites at least an inch away from the previous site.

Step5

Note that it is not necessary to swab the injection site with alcohol provided your skin is clean at the time of injection.

Tips & Warnings

If desirable, you may inject insulin through clothing.
Never shake a vial of insulin since this creates air bubbles that can end up in your syringe and prevent the correct amount of insulin from being in the injection dose.
Never mix one type of insulin with another in the same syringe. Reaction time varies among insulins and mixing them can make their performance unstable.
Avoid injecting insulin into muscle. Not only is this likely to be painful, but can cause the insulin to be absorbed too quickly and cause low blood sugar.