Q: I am a Type 1 diabetic and I am taking Human mixtard 50 insulin, 20 Units in the morning and 10 Units in the evening. If I want to switch over to Human Mixtard 30, how should I go? Will the unit dose and eating pattern remain same? What time I am likely to become hyper and/or hyopglycemic?

A:It is not clear as to why you would want to shift from Human Mixtard 50 to Human Mixtard 30. There is absolutely no difference in their potency: Mixtard 50 contains 50% neutral soluble insulin and 50% slow acting isophane insulin. Mixtard 30 contains 30% neutral soluble insulin and 70% slow acting isophane insulin. Hence, in terms of potency and efficacy there is no difference. I am explaining this because many patients wrongly believe that by shifting from Mixtard 50 to Mixtard 30, they are reducing the total insulin intake. This is not the case - the total quantity of insulin remains the same and does not get reduced. The choice of an insulin formulation depends on the diet pattern. My suggestion is that if you are well controlled on Mixtard 50, there is no point in changing it.