Check your insulin

[China_cat]

I've found the last 2 vials of insulin that I've bought have been sold AFTER their expiration date. This is NOT from one of those home delivery services but from a pharmacy...we have no insurance.

It's October, 2005. I just found the bottle says the expiration date is Sept. 1, 2005. The pharmacy has been slapping a label over the date on the box and they won't take back the vial after the box has been opened for you to see what's on the vial. At $30 a pop, I can't afford this.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

1. Might I make a suggestion?

[booksenkatz]

2. I always open my rx's at the drugstore before I leave

About 10 years ago, I was given the wrong birth control pills... they were a version that barely had any hormones at all, probably made for teenage girls to regulate their periods. In other words, I could have easily gotten pregnant! I was outraged. Ever since then, I open my packages up at the counter, in front of the pharmacist and their crew, before I walk out of the store. I examine everything carefully to make sure the dates are correct, the drugs are correct, the dosages are correct, you name it. Drugs are too expensive for this kind of error.

Ridiculous, isn't it?! Thanks for posting this reminder, it's very important, China_cat.

Edited to add: the incorrect bc pills I was given looked exactly like my regular pills, package and everything. I was about a week into the dosage cycle before I realized they were not the same! If the pharmacist won't do his or her job, I've taken it upon myself to look out for myself.

[China_cat]

9. Insulin doesn't require a prescription.

And I am used to the bottles have expiration dates (for unopened bottles) at least 2 YEARS in the future.

I'm going to try a different pharmacy for the next bottle and see what happens.

[booksenkatz]

11. In that case

I'd still take the potential purchases up to the counter and ask a pharmacist to check them for me prior to paying for them. It's just too important and expensive! I can't believe they can get away with such a cavalier attitude towards people's health and lives.

[Angry Girl]

3. Sounds totally illegal

Check with your state's Attorney General's office. Keep all receipts, boxes, etc.

Good luck!

[Missy M]

4. Report them to your state attorney general, they should be required..

to take back the insulin if they sold it to you after the expiration date. That is fraud in my opinion.

[iamjoy]

6. There Might Be Other Recourses

than the attorney general, but it might be illegal to sell medications after the expiration date and I am almost sure it is not legal to willfully disguise or alter the date. But then, I am not a lawyer.

I do, however, have years of experience in customer service. It is important in these situations to be persistent, but polite. Don't call names, make accusations or threats (I am not saying you would, but I know how easy it is when you are upset to not be as nice as a person as you might otherwise be). Clearly state what you expect and why. Talk to the store manager, if that is not successful, try the regional manager or corporate office. That is, if it is a big chain. If not, call the drug manufacturer and ask if the drug is still effective past the expiration date. There are some who say the expiration date is just a scam to get you to discard perfectly good medication and buy new ones, but I wouldn't bet my life on it. More likely the expiration date is overly cautious 'cos the drug manufacturers are covering their butt, but I wouldn't bet my life on that either.

If nothing else works, call the AG.

[orpupilofnature57]

5. We have become a third world, and Shrub see's u.s. as the needy!!

Our quality control in every area has been obliterated.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. I'm gonna go out on a limb here..... and imagine that you may

be interested in knowing this.


Effects of Glucotize on Insulin Sensitivity (IS) and Glucose Metabolism (GM)

Several double-blind placebo-controlled clinical studies now point to alpha-lipoic acid’s beneficial effect on blood sugar control. In one study, 20 subjects were given 500 mgs of alpha-lipoic acid for a period of 10 days. The insulin-stimulated glucose disposal and insulin sensitivity increased by 30%. The result was considered statistically significant (p<.05). In clinical terms, that means the improvement could not be attributed to any other factor(s) except the alpha-lipoic acid.



Effects of Glucotize on Muscle Uptake of Glucose in Type II Diabetics

The majority of glucose is stored in skeletal muscle tissue. That’s because skeletal muscle constitutes the bulk of body tissue. Any defect in the uptake of glucose by muscle contributes significantly to Type 2 diabetes, glucose intolerance, and sub-clinical hyperglycemia.

A clinical experiment was designed to see if lipoic acid would augment insulin mediated glucose disposal in 13 Type 2 diabetic patients. Seven patients received 1000 mg. of lipoic and six patients received a placebo. Both groups were comparable in age, body-mass index, duration of diabetes, and degree of insulin resistance.

A special experimental design called a "glucose clamp" was employed. The administration of lipoic resulted in a significant increase of insulin-stimulated glucose disposal. The metabolic clearance rate for glucose rose by about 50% whereas the control group did not show any significant change. The investigators note that "this is the first clinical study to show that alpha-lipoic acid increases insulin stimulated glucose disposal in Type 2 diabetes" (Jacob S; Henriksen EJ; Schiemann AL; Simon I; Clancy DE; Tritschler HJ; Jung WI; Augustin HJ; Dietze GJ, 1995).

[Angry Girl]

14. Are you interested in supplements and herbs affecting insulin?

Alpha lipoic acid is now known to control blood sugar levels, as do chromium and Gymnema sylvestre etc....

[HysteryDiagnosis]

15. I have been reading about them, studying the SCIENCE behind

them, and proving them out for myself for about 10 years now. Alpha Lipoic Acid is nothing short of a miraculous substance.... a "true" diabetic needs to check out the time release version.... so that they won't have hypoglycemic attacks.... www.lipoic.com

[Angry Girl]

16. Essential info our "health" industry doesn't really care to share

It's disgraceful. That's why it's so important to become as knowledgeable as possible about one's own health.

Are you taking acetyl-L-carnitine with the ALA?

[HysteryDiagnosis]

17. I've got L-Carnitine in my CoQ10..... nt.

[lady lib]

8. If it's a chain pharmacy, call their HQ and tell them what happened.

If it's privately owned, try one last time to return the insulin. In either case, if they don't immediately replace the insulin, I agree with the other posters, call the State Attorney General.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

10. I'm sorry to hear this

I assume you are insulin dependent, but here's a suggestion that I don't think will hurt and might help with your blood sugar level; take chrome. It does something to blood glucose so if it is too high, it goes down, and if it is too low, it comes up. I tend towards hypoglycemia, and my husband is diabetic, and our doctor recommended it for both of us. To be perfectly clear, my husband is NOT insulin dependent, but controls his diabetes through diet and supplements. Check with your MD about this-if it can help, it is worth it, and Chromate, the kind we use, is under $10 a bottle-and that bottle lasts a month with both of us using it.

[shenmue]

12. Uh-oh

Can you say, class-action lawsuit? I'm sure they're doing this to other people, and that will make even more of an impact in court.

Some firms will help you out pro bono if you are strapped. What the company is doing screams unethical and illegal, and you certainly don't deserve to have this happen to you.

Good luck.

[camero]

13. How does it look?

Bad insulin from my experience is usually grayish in color or has noticeable chunks for NPH types but not all the time. I also check my BG levels vigorously after getting a new bottle to gauge whether it is working properly. High BG levels without a logical explanation (diet, activity levels, stress in some cases) points to bad insulin even if it's before the expiration date.

The pharmacies I have bought mine from have a bad habit of leaving it sit out in the open where temperature extremes are possible and not in thier fridge where it should be. I know where you are coming from because I had to return a vial with no label on it which is just as bad because if for some reason I have to catch a plane, I wouldn't be able to take it on with me. A talk with the assistant manager straightened that one out.

In any case, thanks for the heads up. I'll check mine again when I get home but I'm pretty sure mine still has a year before it's expiration.