Maximizing Insulin Absorption: Tips for Needle-Free Insulin Delivery Success

With the rising popularity of needle-free insulin therapy, some people may wonder whether insulin absorption will be the same.

After all, you’re now injecting without a needle. How can you guarantee that the insulin will be absorbed? How can you even ensure the insulin is injected where it should be?

In this guide, we’ll look deeper into the effectiveness of needle-free insulin therapy to achieve normal blood glucose levels. We’ll understand that it’s not just as effective as needles but can also surpass needle therapy if used right.

Needle-free insulin delivery is a revolutionary approach to insulin administration that allows you to safely and quickly inject yourself with the daily insulin you need without worrying about needle pricks.

The idea is to replace the hypodermic needle with a thin, high-velocity stream of liquid that can penetrate and enter the skin with virtually no pain.

There were mixed opinions from people regarding needle-free injections when they first came out, as they weren’t as advanced as they are now, and there were questions regarding the absorption of the insulin administered.

However, with how far science has come, needle-free insulin therapy is slowly becoming the future of type 1 diabetes management.

Assuming that you invest in the right injector and have consulted with your doctor about your condition, needle-free insulin therapy isn’t just effective; it could reshape how you handle life with type 1 diabetes, making it easier and much more approachable.

Setting aside all the benefits (which we’ll discuss soon), some studies found that the blood glucose levels of patients who used needle-free insulin therapy were better compared to those who used needles.

In other words, those who used no needle actually had better insulin absorption. This is the exact opposite of what people were worried about regarding insulin absorption with needle-free injections.

Of course, this isn’t an absolute result, as the study is recent in 2023, and there are many more to give final results. Still, how is that possible?

The answer is simple: Innovation and technology in detecting the ideal injection depth. Allow us to explain.

The ideal insulin injection site is below the skin’s fatty layer and above the muscle’s fascia. In numbers, that’s approximately 4-5 mm below the skin.

Most insulin needles have a depth of 4-6 mm, allowing for a close approximation to the ideal injection site. 4-5 mm needles are typically the best for insulin administration in adults with normal body mass index (BMI).

These needles are also suitable for children, but they shouldn’t be pressed to their full depth like they would be with adults.

People with higher BMI tend to use longer needles, but they need to angulate the needle and pinch the skin based on how high the BMI is. This becomes even more of a hassle for children.

As you can see, even with putting the inconvenience of needle pricks aside, injecting the insulin properly using needles isn’t easy.

Once again, this depends on whether you’re investing in a good injector. Assuming that you do, the injector will be designed to inject the stream of insulin at the same depth every single time.

This allows for consistent injection at the appropriate depth every single time. If the injector is advanced enough, it’ll be suitable for people with high BMI.

Now for the heart of this post. If you’re depending on daily insulin, you’d want to be able to have your insulin injected in the optimum depth repeatedly.

If the injection is too shallow, your body won’t absorb the insulin as it should, and it won’t lower your blood sugar.

Some people might think the solution would be injecting as deeply as possible, but that will actually cause the opposite effect.

A deep injection means injecting inside the muscle tissue. Putting aside how painful that will be, the absorption will be too fast, and your blood sugar levels will drop too quickly, risking hypoglycemia.

If you want optimum absorption with every needle-free injection, follow these tips:

The concept of needle-free insulin therapy is more popular now than ever. However, only some needle-free designs can give you the optimum experience.

One of the best recommendations you can try is InsuJet’s new V5 Injector.

For starters, this injector can be used up to 5,000 times, allowing it to last for 4-5 years if you take an average of three insulin injections a day.

It’s also compatible with all U-100 insulins and can easily aspirate insulin from 3mL and 10mL vials. If you have leftover insulin pens, it can take insulin from those, too, so you’ll never waste anything.

Speaking of waste, spending 4-5 years without using a single needle for insulin is a huge load taken off the environment’s shoulders. In numbers, that’s over 4,000 needles avoided.

People who often struggle to get the best insulin absorption might overdraw insulin to compensate for the lack of absorption. Other people might also mistakenly overdraw insulin because of those small-scale numbers placed on the syringes.

That’s not a problem with the InsuJet. With its smart numbering system, you can aspirate up to 40 units with pinpoint accuracy using its clear gauging system.

Drawing the appropriate amount of insulin, mixed with the right injection, translates into the optimum absorption. Remember, you want the maximum “required” absorption, not an over-absorption.

The skin’s resistance and thickness are taken into consideration while designing the InsuJet. However, you’ll only achieve the desired absorption by using the injector in the way it’s intended to be used, and that’s by ensuring that the device is strictly perpendicular to the skin.

The InsuJet is so easy to use that it sometimes backfires on the user. After drawing insulin and removing air bubbles, all you have to do is press the injector against your skin. Since it’s not battery-powered, that skin press is all it needs for the device to work.

This simplicity might cause some people to carelessly place the device at the injection site without ensuring the proper angle. This shoots the insulin away from its intended site, which can reduce absorption.

You can safely inject insulin in the abdomen, thighs, buttocks, and upper arms. However, selecting one site and continuously using it as your preferred injection course is not ideal.

As mentioned earlier, the InsuJet is designed to inject in the optimum site. That design considers the thickness of our fat tissue layer located under the skin.

If you consistently inject at the same site, you may develop temporary lipodystrophy at this site, which means the fatty tissue in that location will be thinner.

A thinner fatty tissue means a deeper penetration of the injected insulin, leading to proximity to muscles, pain, and an absorption that’s too fast.

So, while it’s convenient to use popular sites like the upper arm or belly, varying insulin injection sites is highly recommended.

What is the difference between diabetes type 1 and 2? Type 1 has little to no insulin production, and type 2 can’t utilize insulin. One of the primary methods to handle type 2 diabetes is by improving your diet.

Imagine that you’re properly injecting yourself with insulin, but your cells are still somewhat resistant to it. Would you increase the dose and risk hypoglycemia or try to combat insulin resistance?

Eating foods that aren’t healthy for you will increase insulin resistance. One of the best methods to improve insulin sensitivity is by taking an insulin resistance diet, a collection of highly nutritious foods that won’t spike up your blood sugar.

Losing weight is a lot more difficult for diabetic patients than healthy people. That’s another factor taken in mind while designing the InsuJet.

Unlike short insulin needles, which will struggle to reach the optimum injection site, the V5 injector is suitable for people with higher BMI.

Its pressure mechanism spreads away the extra fatty layer under the skin, allowing for accurate insulin delivery at the proper site. However, there’s a limit to how much that pressure can work, especially in obesity.

As such, losing a few pounds of extra weight can help your injection do its proper job of controlling your blood sugar levels.

Even if you don’t suffer from obesity, exercising and having a healthy lifestyle can help increase insulin sensitivity.

This might come as a surprise, but several studies found that reduced sleep can increase the risk of developing insulin resistance.

It’s difficult, life is hard, providing is difficult, and the economy isn’t helping. But when it’s about your health, you should give yourself a break. Aim for an average of eight hours of sleep every night.

Whenever there’s blood, there’s a risk of infection. Whenever there’s a needle, there’s blood. By using needle-free insulin therapy, you’ll inject yourself with insulin without a sip of blood.

Unless the injection site is exceptionally dirty, using the InsuJet almost guarantees no infection at the site of injection.

Patients with type 1 diabetes need to set aside a monthly budget just for their insulin. While a plastic syringe or even an insulin pen can be far cheaper, the InsuJet is still a better financial investment.

Let’s start with the pen. While it hides the needles and provides discretion, the pen becomes useless once its cartilage is empty. Plus, it still has a needle.

Syringes, despite being the cheapest, are disposable. In other words, you’ll need a new plastic syringe with every injection.

So, is it cheaper to use the same device for over 5,000 injections over 4-5 years or pay for 5,000 plastic syringes?

We’re not talking about the protective case that can carry everything you need, the small and discrete appearance of the injector, or the accessories that can allow your injector to draw insulin from almost any insulin source.

We’re talking about how easy the InsuJet is to use. Worrying about getting a battery or charging your device is unnecessary. Once you prime your injector, the next step is to literally press the device against your skin. That’s as convenient as it gets.

It’s important to understand that maximizing insulin absorption doesn’t mean loading your body with as much insulin as it can absorb.

The trick is to keep your blood sugar levels within the normal range. As such, you’re looking for the “optimum” absorption, not the “maximum.”

To do that with a needle-free device, you should start by selecting the best device you can get.

Follow the usage instructions and the tips we mentioned above, and your insulin absorption will be optimum enough for optimum blood glucose control.