There are four main types of insulin. They differ in:
- how fast they work, called their onset
- when they work the best, called their peak
- how long they last, called their duration
Type of Insulin | Generic Name | Brand Name | Work Within |
Work Best, or "Peak" at | Lasts |
Rapid-Acting | insulin lispro (human) | Humalog | 15 minutes | 30 to 90 minutes | 3 to 4 hours |
insulin aspart | NovoLog | ||||
insulin glusiline | Apidra | ||||
Short-Acting | insulin injection | Humulin R | 30 minutes | 1 to 3 hours | 6 to 8 hours |
(regular) | Novolin R | ||||
Novolin R PenFill | |||||
Novolin R Prefilled | |||||
Velosulin Human BR | |||||
Regular Iletin II | |||||
Intermediate-Acting | isophane insulin suspension (NPH) | Humulin N | about 2 hours | 4 to 12 hours | 24 hours |
Novolin N | |||||
Novolin N PenFill | |||||
Novolin N Prefilled | |||||
NPH-N | |||||
Long-Acting | insulin glargine | Lantus | about 2 hours | no peak | up to 24 hours |
isulin detemir | Levemir | ||||
NPH/R Mixtures | insulin isophane suspension | Humulin 70/30 | about 30 minutes | 2 to 12 hours | 18 to 24 hours |
regular insulin | Humulin 50/50 | ||||
Novolin 70/30 | |||||
insulin lispro protamine | Humalog | about 15 to 30 minutes | 2 to 12 hours | 18 to 24 hours | |
insulin lispro | Mix 75/25 |
Written by award-winning health writer Bobbie Hasselbring
Reviewed by Beth Seltzer, MD
Last updated June 2008