If you don’t know how much carbohydrate you will consume in a meal, consider splitting your rapid-acting insulin dose. Take enough insulin at the beginning of the meal to cover the amount of carbohydrate you know you will eat, then take more insulin as soon as you know you’ll eat more than that.

When taking insulin, the thickness of fat under the skin at the injection site, exercising before or after an injection, and air temperature can all affect how quickly insulin is absorbed.

If you take rapid-acting insulin with meals, try taking it 5, 10, and 15 minutes before eating on different occasions to determine which timing is best for you to control your postmeal blood glucose spike. Check your blood glucose level one, two, and three hours after your meal to gauge the effect.

Insulin leakage at the injection site or worsening blood glucose control may indicate that a syringe or insulin pen with a longer needle is needed.

Rapid-acting insulin can lower blood glucose for as long as five hours, although it varies from person to person. If you plan on taking another dose within five hours of your last one, reduce it somewhat to lower the risk of hypoglycemia.

Your diabetes care team can help you determine your insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio, or how much insulin you need to take for a certain amount of carbohydrate, by looking at your food records and records of your premeal and postmeal blood glucose levels.

You should be aware that if you switch to a different syringe or insulin pen or from one to the other, the injection technique may differ.

Most likely — insulin adjustments are often necessary every seven to 10 days during pregnancy.

For people who have trouble injecting insulin or who are afraid of needles, various injection aid devices exist that hide the needle or assist with inserting it into the skin. Before purchasing an injection aid, make sure that it is compatible with the type of syringe you use.

If you plan to eat a long, drawn-out meal, consider taking half of your mealtime insulin at the beginning of the meal and the other half an hour or two later.

It is important to prime an insulin pen — also known as doing an “air shot” — to make sure that insulin is flowing properly and that there is no air in the cartridge or needle.

Maybe. If you take insulin and regularly need to eat before or during exercise to prevent or treat low blood sugar, speak to your doctor or diabetes educator about lowering your insulin doses on days you exercise.

The normal hormone production and weight gain that occur during pregnancy increase insulin resistance, causing a woman’s insulin needs to change during this time.

Both your premeal blood glucose level and the glycemic index of the foods you are planning to eat should be taken into consideration when deciding when to take a mealtime insulin dose.

Never use an open vial for more than a month, and always check the expiration date on your insulin before using it.

Unless otherwise directed, don’t skip insulin or oral medicines when you’re sick, even if you’re eating less than usual. The stress of an illness may actually increase your insulin needs temporarily.

Be careful when taking extra insulin to “cover” for high blood glucose. Take into account any insulin that is still active from your previous dose, as well as any variability in the effect of the “correction” insulin based on the time of day or other factors.

Since fiber is not digested or absorbed, you should subtract the grams of fiber from the total carbohydrate on the label if there are more than 5 grams of fiber per serving. People who are very sensitive to insulin may wish to subtract all fiber, even if there are fewer than 5 grams per serving.

The expiration date on insulin packaging is for unopened, refrigerated vials, disposable pens, or pen cartridges. Once opened, most vials of insulin last for 28 days, even if refrigerated, but many pens and pen cartridges are good for only 7, 10, or 14 days (and should not be refrigerated).