The Price of Perfection
In most things we do, the law of diminishing returns apply. I read somewhere that unless you're an ultra-marathoner, the added benefit you get beyond 65 miles per week is so slight that it's often not worth it, given the time it takes to add on more miles and the wear and tear it creates on your body.
But more specific to this post, I've been considering some diabetes-related items, and how they may contribute to the law of diminishing returns.
The first is Apidra insulin, which I've been on for several months now. In terms of is it a "better" insulin than Novolog, my immediate answer is, "Yes." The reduced occlusions in an insulin pump create truly flat line blood sugars between meals and the faster reaction time is helpful, too.
That being said, this "super" insulin has been more sensitive - I'm assuming to temperature - for me. I've thrown out three vials that simply lost their "oomph." One I left in a hot car for one hour and the other two, I have no idea why they went bad, but they did.
And I'm also wondering about the Omnipod. No doubt about, my blood sugars are in better control on the Omnipod. Not dramatically, but a little. That being said, it seems I'm accidentally ripping out at least one pod per week. When I was on the pump, I'd rip out maybe six infusion sets per year.
All of which means, I'm a diabetic who's in a little bit better control, but who also needs to keep fresh insulin bottles and pods at the ready. It's not enough to make me switch, at this point, but it's enough to make me think about how obsessive I want to be about keeping my blood sugars under control. I'm a big believer in having my diabetes be the MacGuffin in my life, not a scene-stealing co-star. And dirty insulin vials and torn out pods have a way of stealing limelight I'm not very interested in.
But more specific to this post, I've been considering some diabetes-related items, and how they may contribute to the law of diminishing returns.
The first is Apidra insulin, which I've been on for several months now. In terms of is it a "better" insulin than Novolog, my immediate answer is, "Yes." The reduced occlusions in an insulin pump create truly flat line blood sugars between meals and the faster reaction time is helpful, too.
That being said, this "super" insulin has been more sensitive - I'm assuming to temperature - for me. I've thrown out three vials that simply lost their "oomph." One I left in a hot car for one hour and the other two, I have no idea why they went bad, but they did.
And I'm also wondering about the Omnipod. No doubt about, my blood sugars are in better control on the Omnipod. Not dramatically, but a little. That being said, it seems I'm accidentally ripping out at least one pod per week. When I was on the pump, I'd rip out maybe six infusion sets per year.
All of which means, I'm a diabetic who's in a little bit better control, but who also needs to keep fresh insulin bottles and pods at the ready. It's not enough to make me switch, at this point, but it's enough to make me think about how obsessive I want to be about keeping my blood sugars under control. I'm a big believer in having my diabetes be the MacGuffin in my life, not a scene-stealing co-star. And dirty insulin vials and torn out pods have a way of stealing limelight I'm not very interested in.
