Insulin names can be confusing, so today I’m hoping to clear up a few things. Insulin was first isolated and extracted in 1921 and made commercially available in 1922. That early insulin was a somewhat fast-acting insulin like our Regular insulin today. In the 1950s protein was added to the insulin to make it work more slowly. This allowed people to take fewer injections and get a longer effect from the insulin.
For the first several decades, insulin came from animals: first cows, then pigs. Cow and pig insulin differs from human insulin by several amino acids (insulin is a protein, which is a chain of amino acids). In the 1980s scientists figured out how to make insulin in the laboratory that is amino acid for amino acid the same as human insulin. We call this “human insulin,” although it does not come from humans.
The two companies who sold insulin in the US at that time were Lilly and Novo Nordisk. Lilly’s version of human insulin was named “Humulin” and Novo Nordisk’s was named “Novolin.” Those names just indicate that it is “human insulin,” while the specific type of insulin could be “Regular” or “NPH” or something else.
In the 1990s scientists figured out how to move amino acids around or substitute one for another, and created insulin “analogs.” The first insulin analog on the market was Humalog from “human insulin analog,” a rapid-acting insulin (works faster than Regular insulin). Then came Novolog and Apidra. Humalog and Humulin are often confused, as well as Novolog and Novolin.
It’s important to know what type of insulin you take (if you do), how it works, and when it’s action is peaking. Check with your health care provider if you have any questions and always check to be sure you get the right insulin.