About 72 million people in India roughly 5% of the population and the second highest in the world have Diabetes. 7% of these population are using insulin formula to maintain their sugar level under control. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas and helps in regulation of blood sugar in the body. In diabetes, either the body does not produce enough insulin, or it can not make efficient use of insulin produced in the body. 

I.V insulin injections are painful

Insulin injection is an effective treatment for diabetes but taking it intravenously could be painful. To overcome these researchers are looking for a more easy way of delivering insulin. Recently a team from the US, Canada, Denmark, UK, Italy tested the efficacy and safety of a new injectable form of insulin to be used weekly. 

The dose of insulin to be injected varies and depends upon the amount of carbohydrates in the diet, exercise and stress level. Thus, these injections are little complicated. According to 2016 studies, patients who are using insulin, often make mistakes regarding their dose and injection site. These mistakes can result in a severe complications, which can be deadly. Researchers are exploring new options for insulin delivery. 

A ray of hope

New clinical trials evaluated the safety and efficacy of insulin codec. It has a long half-life of 196 hours making it suitable for a weekly dose. Clinical trials include around 300 volunteers having health related issues found to be safe in phase 1 studies. These volunteers were also given oral medicine like metformin. The studies were then randomized which means volunteers were randomly assigned to get further doses and medicines. 

From clinical trials, it was found that insulin icodec was as effective as daily insulin injections. The researchers also found that shifting from daily to weekly insulin was safe and well-tolerated. 

The researchers state that the result of clinical trials is very helpful for people using daily insulin injection and also for those who may need it. They have mentioned their results as a game changer for those people who need multiple injections in a day. 

Convenience to the people

The biggest advantage of having weekly insulin is convenience for the patients. It is like taking one injection in place of seven injections. This weekly insulin would make it easier for a diabetic patient to manage their dose and care. 

Phase 3 program is undergoing that includes six studies to be evaluated for patients of type 1 and type 2 diabetes, new to insulin and those who have already experienced insulin. 

This study may improve lives of millions of people yet there are some limitations in research like generalization.