Insulin is Mandatory

Insulin therapy is often an important part of diabetes treatment. Understand the key role insulin plays in managing your blood sugar and the goals of insulin therapy. What you learn can help you prevent diabetes complications.

It may be easier to understand the importance of insulin therapy if you understand how insulin normally works in the body and what happens when you have diabetes.

The main job of insulin is to keep the level of sugar in the bloodstream within a normal range. After you eat, carbohydrates break down into sugar and enter the bloodstream in the form of glucose, a sugar that serves as a primary source of energy. Normally the pancreas responds by producing insulin, which allows sugar to enter the tissues.

After you eat — when insulin levels are high — excess glucose is stored in the liver in the form of glycogen. Between meals — when insulin levels are low — the liver releases glycogen into the bloodstream in the form of sugar. This keeps blood sugar levels within a narrow range.

If your pancreas secretes little or no insulin (type 1 diabetes), the level of sugar in your bloodstream increases. This is because it's unable to enter cells. Left untreated, high blood sugar can lead to complications such as blindness, nerve damage (neuropathy) and kidney damage.

If you have type 1 diabetes, insulin therapy replaces the insulin your body is unable to produce. If your doctor says that you need insulin therapy, take the recommendation seriously. Insulin therapy can help prevent diabetes complications by helping keep your blood sugar within your target range.