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High bgl

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Polly1

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Type 2
Hi I am new to this so please be patient with me. I am type 2 but on insulin and tablets. I am living in Japan at the moment but am from Australia. I go back to Australia twice a year to get my medicines. Because of this I bring back 6 months worth at a time.
I am now using insulin that is 12 months out of date my bgl is high in the 12-16 range is this possibly because my insulin is out of date. I am worried about throwing any out as it is a very precious commodity.
 
Hi Polly, welcome to the forum 🙂 I would think that there could quite possibly be a problem with the insulin, being so far out of date :( How has it been kept?
 
Hi Polly,

I wouldn't continue to use out of date insulin. I'm not familiar with how things work in Australia, ie. whether you have free healthcare or personal medical insurance, presumably you are bringing all your meds to Japan with you for financial reasons? Nevertheless, if I were you I would visit a doctor locally and get a prescription for some fresh insulin. (Cheaper than flying home to resupply! 🙂).
 
I wouldn't use insulin that far out of date at all. It's a biological product. You wouldn't eat chicken that was 12 months past its best before date - so why inject something that's equally beyond it?

Rather than throw it away though, have a word with your chemist when you're back in Australia. First, see if you can get something with a longer expiry date on it in the first instance. Second, take your old insulin back with you and see if you can exchange it. Some chemists might be prepared to swap expired, unopened insulin for new insulin as the prescription has obviously been approved, you just haven't had a chance to use it yet.
 
Thank you all for your replies. In answer to some of your questions, I cannot get my insulin in Japan so that is why I bring it from Australia. The cost of flying is not an issue as the company pay for my flights. I do not believe my chemist would swap my old medication for new as it has been so long since it was dispensed.
Have already visited a local diabetic doctor in Japan and he wanted to change my meds completely because Japanese people are so different, in size, in what they eat. I cannot read the ingredients on the labels here which is what I was taught in Australia so not sure what sugar or carb counts are in some of the food.
My insulin has been kept refrigerated since I have had it even bringing it into the country.
I have a question, I will be in London in 2 weeks can someone tell me if I can get novamix pens in England? If so maybe I could get a new script there. Thank you once again for your answers.
 
The expiry date on your insulin assumes it will be refrigerated. It's no different from any other biological product, it won't keep indefinitely in a fridge.

can someone tell me if I can get novamix pens in England? If so maybe I could get a new script there.
Click to expand...

Novomix Flexpens are available in the UK but I would be surprised if you will have easy access to these. You would need to register with a GP, make an appointment and then explain your situation before you'd get a script, and there's also the issue of whether or not you'd actually be eligible for treatment under the UK system given you're a foreigner and non-resident.

Your best bet is to get in touch with a private (ie. non-NHS) doctor's surgery in the UK - maybe give them a call first before you travel and see if this is something they can do for you. However you will probably find that this will cost quite a lot.

Are you 100% sure you can't get a mixed Flexpen in Japan? With the help of Google Translate I've had a dig through the Novo Nordisk website and they actually offer far more Flexpen varieties than there are in the UK.

http://www.novonordisk.co.jp/documents/article_page/document/PRO_DM_rpmxfpen.asp
 
Polly, UK has a reciprocal health agreement with Australia (and vice versa) so if you have an Aussie passport, you should be OK.

I'm not sure whether you'd have to pay for the insulin or not, but certainly you can see a GP free of charge, as a temporary resident from a country that has this reciprocal agreement.

You could have a look for info for visitors from outside the EU on the UK Department of Health website, or there may indeed be info about it on the Oz Gov website?
 
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