Does a Type 1 diabetic patient fast? - Medical Benefits 31

Fasting for Type 1 Diabetic Patients

Can a person with type 1 diabetes fast? There is no single answer for all patients. The decision depends on the categorization of cases mentioned previously in episodes (22 to 25) of the "Medical Benefits" series, or based on the risk assessment criteria detailed in episode (26).

Adjusting Insulin Doses During Fasting

If, according to medical evaluation, fasting is suitable for the patient, they need to reduce the total insulin dose by a percentage ranging between 15 to 30%.

In this case, it is advised to switch the patient to a "Basal-bolus regimen," where the patient takes:

• Long-acting insulin: such as (Levemir) or (Lantus).
• Ultra-short-acting insulin: such as (Apidra), (Novorapid), or (Humalog).

The goal of this regimen is to avoid a drop in blood sugar levels during the day in Ramadan.

Managing Mixed Insulin

If the patient remains on a "Premixed insulin" (Premixed insulin) system, also known as "cloudy" - such as (Mixtard) or (Humalin 70/30) - in this case, the dose should be reduced, with a particular focus on reducing the dose at suhoor (pre-dawn meal).

For detailed information on how to adjust doses, you can refer to the lecture for which we provided a link in the video description.