How to Choose the Right Insulin Injection Site for Your Child
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It can be hard to know which insulin injection site is best for your child.
Insulin injection sites are one of the most important parts of managing type 1 diabetes.
By knowing where to inject your child’s insulin, you can ensure that the insulin is absorbed properly and helps to control blood sugar levels.
Every child’s body is different and each insulin injection site will work differently for each child.
There are a number of different insulin injection sites, and each has its own benefits and drawbacks.
Insulin injections should not be intimidating for you and your child as you know what site will work best for them!
Here, we’ll take a look at the most popular insulin injection sites and how to use them correctly.
This guide offers tips on how to choose the right insulin injection site for your child based on their individual needs.
Best Place for Insulin Absorption
You’re probably wondering where the best place is to inject insulin, right?
Different areas of the body absorb insulin at different rates, so it’s important to find the spot to insert the needle that will work best for your child.
The stomach has been found to be very effective for insulin absorption, and it’s where all your child’s glucose will go once your child eats something!
The next best places are the love handles, upper arms, and lastly his/her leg for his/her doses of insulin.
Insulin Injection Sites Guide
This easy-to-follow guide makes it easy for you to remember where are the best places to inject your child’s insulin each day.
Where To Avoid Injections
Avoid injecting near joints, the groin area, and scar tissue.
If your child is on an insulin pump, you will also need to rotate your child’s injection/infusion sites.
If your child is constantly using an area of the body for long periods of time, it can become thicker, it can develop scar tissue, which can cause problems with absorption rate as well!
Rotatating Injection Sites
Rotating insulin injection sites is especially important because it can help reduce the risk of skin infection.
When you rotate your child’s insulin injection sites, it also helps avoid scar tissue and insulin absorption will be better.
When changing your child’s injection sites, try and go in a circular motion.
For example, if your child is using the stomach for injections/infusion sites start at 45 degrees up from the belly button and work towards a circular movement around this location.
Do the same with other body parts like arms or legs as well!
Consequences of Not Rotating Sites of Insulin
If the injection sites are not rotated, and one spot is used for long periods of time, this can cause lipodystrophy and interfere with insulin absorption.
Your child’s body may struggle to absorb insulin correctly due to a buildup of fat-causing lumps and indents that are disrupting normal processes.
Insulin Injection Sites Guide
This easy-to-follow guide makes it easy for you to remember where are the best places to inject your child’s insulin each day.
Best Time to Inject Insulin
There could be many factors that go into when the best time for your child to receive his/her insulin, like the dawn phenomenon.
From my experience, insulin shots work better if taken immediately before eating (pre-bolus) or 30 minutes afterward.
Remember, glucose enters in to the bloodstream quickly after drinking or eating.
Some people with diabetes may need more time in advance than others. It will all depend on what else they are going to be doing around the time insulin is given.
Most of the time, it will be okay to inject insulin after eating and/or drinking. As long as your child is not extremely low.
What to Expect?
Because insulin injection sites are a very important part of insulin administration, choosing the right insulin injection site is very important.
I totally understand that injecting your child or picking an insulin injection site can be intimidating for a parent and their child.
Remember that choosing the right insulin injection site should be based on your child’s individual needs.
If you’re unsure about where in the body the insulin should go, call your child’s Endo team, and they can assist you.
From what I have learned, in all my years as a type 1 diabetic mom, it will all be based on trial and error. Some areas will be better than others for your child. So explore and find out where these places are.
