I partnered with Med-IQ is an accredited medical education company that provides an exceptional educational experience for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals. That means better care for patients.
I was compensated by Med-IQ through an educational grant from Sanofi to write about the realities of diabetes as a chronic disease. All opinions are my own.
More than 34 million people in the United States have diabetes, and one and five of them don’t know they have it.
Additionally once patients are diagnosed, they may take some time to decide on their individual treatment options.
In a survey conducted by Med-IQ 25% of respondents did not start taking medicines to help control their blood sugar levels within three months of their diagnosis.
74% of people with diabetes are not taking insulin and the main reason they weren’t taking insulin was because their doctor never mentioned it to them.
When you’re first diagnosed with diabetes the information can be overwhelming.
You might not get a lot of details from your care team about how to move forward with your care.
You might actually not even have a care team that has the expertise in treating diabetes. But the best thing you can do is to be educated on the options you have.
Why is it important to keep your blood sugars in range?
People with type 2 diabetes can manage their blood glucose levels with healthy lifestyle changes and medicine.
It’s important to note that at least eight parts of the body can cause blood glucose to rise in different ways, including the pancreas, gut, fat cells, kidney’s, muscle, brain, nerves and liver. They’re also 40 different factors that affect blood glucose.
Keeping blood glucose at target levels can help people with diabetes live long and healthy lives.
Since so many parts of the body play a role in type 2 diabetes many health problems can occur if blood glucose levels are above Target for a long time. For example high blood glucose levels can enter the heart, kidney’s, nerves, eyes and feet.
Think about the fact that you’re blood helps all of your organs function. If your blood glucose is elevated over long periods of time, and there’s high amounts of sugar in your blood, your organs can be damaged over time.
Which treatments can help you keep your blood sugars in range?
Lifestyle changes, including self-management education and support, medical nutrition therapy, regular exercise, counseling programs for smoking cessation, and psychological support can help with blood sugar management. But there are also highly effective combination therapies that can help people with diabetes manage blood sugars.
What is fixed-ratio combination injectable therapy?
Fixed-ratio combination injectable therapy includes 2 different treatments for diabetes: insulin and the medicine called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist. These 2 types of medicine work together to lower glucose levels in your blood.
Insulin allows glucose to leave your blood and enter your cells (especially between meals and overnight).
GLP-1 receptor agonists help lower blood glucose levels after a meal; they also slow the movement of food from your stomach (gastric emptying) and can help prevent weight gain, which helps insulin resistance.
In addition, the fixed-ratio combination injectables offers more benefits than either one alone. The combination may help you reach your blood glucose goals.
For some, it makes treatment and quality of life easier. The combination lowers the risk of weight gain and low blood glucose levels (hypoglycemia) and lessens unwanted side effects of each treatment — like weight gain from insulin, and gastrointestinal issues from GLP-1
Why should I consider a fixed-ratio combination injectable therapy?
There comes a point where you should ask your doctor about combination therapies.
If your blood glucose levels are not well managed with your current medicines
When you are already taking both medicines separately, you may find it easier to do just one.
When you experience intolerable side-effects of current treatment.
What are possible side effects?
Your healthcare provider or diabetes care and education specialist will discuss possible side effects with you.
Some people with other medical conditions in addition to type 2 diabetes may not be able to take treatments with GLP-1 receptor agonists.
Make sure to tell your healthcare provider or diabetes care and education specialist about all other medical conditions and any medicines that you take. To determine if it’s right for you.
What are the currently available fix-ratio combination injectable therapies?
iDegLira
- iDegLirais a titratable fixed-ratio combination containing insulin degludec (100 U/mL) and liraglutide (3.6 mg/mL).
iGlarLixi
- iGlarLixi is a titratable fixed-ratio combination containing insulin glargine (100 U/mL) and lixisenatide (33 µg/mL).
You are the expert on your own health
You know what’s working and what’s not working for you. While members of your care team are there to support you, and help you do what’s best, you can feel encouraged to bring information you think will help you to the discussion.
Speak up, ask questions, and engage in the conversation, so you can do what’s right for you.
The survey contains links to external sites. Any such links are provided as a convenience and for educational purposes only. They are not intended as medical or legal advice, nor are they endorsements of any organization or medication.
