*Welcome to the OutUK series looking at gay men and their health brought to you in association with the NHS* website.**
	Each week we'll tackle a different topic in our A to Z of Gay Health. We'll have features and advice on everything from relationships, sexual health, mental and physical conditions and how to stay fit. You can follow any of links provided below for more information direct from the NHS website, or see this week's feature L: Laxatives.

Side Effects Of Long Acting Insulin

NHS medicines information on side effects of long-acting insulin and what you can do to cope.

Like all medicines, long-acting insulin can cause side effects, although not everyone gets them. If you do have side effects such as problems where you inject, they usually happen in the first few weeks of starting insulin.

Common side effects

There are things you can do to help cope with these common side effects of long-acting insulin:

Speak to your doctor or diabetes nurse if the advice on how to cope does not help and a side effect is still bothering you or does not go away.

Serious side effects

Insulin can sometimes cause severe hypos, where your blood glucose falls very low and you can become unconscious.

Speak to your doctor or diabetes nurse if:

you've had severe hypos
you do not always recognise the symptoms when you have a hypo

Call 999 if:

You think someone's having a severe hypo and they're not responding normally or they're unconscious, and:

a glucagon injection is not available or you do not know how to use it
you've given a glucagon injection and they have not recovered within 10 minutes
they've been drinking alcohol

Serious allergic reaction

In rare cases, it's possible to have a serious allergic reaction to long-acting insulin (anaphylaxis).

Other side effects

These are not all the side effects of long acting insulin. For a full list, see the leaflet inside your medicine packet.

OutUK's A to Z of Gay Health continues and you can read this week's feature L: Laxatives. We have covered many subjects in this series and you can catch up with all of our Previous A to Z Features. If you want to find out more about this particular topic you can visit the Original article on the NHS website. If you are worried by any aspect of your health make sure you go and see your doctor or book an appointment at your local clinic.
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