Blood glucose test meters
Common Questions and Answers about Blood glucose test meters
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A good way to see if yours is within normal variance is to bring along your meter when you go for a blood draw (from a vein). Within 5-10 minutes of them drawing blood, do your own blood test and save the results. Compare them with what the doc tells you your number was. Your result should be within 15% of the doc's result.
What's important here is to know how you feel & how you function when your BG is at different numbers.
Before leaving her doctors office your mother should have gotten a wealth of printed information on how to control and manage her diabetes. A list of recommended home glucose test meters should have been part of that package.
my husband was 2yrs post liver transplant, that is the one reason why he is also now suffering from monitor blood sugar problem. my question now is about fluctition of his blood glucose, we have a kit monitoring it before and after meal, but there was time when we check it is high then after just a minute it drop down, we are really worried why is this happening? hoping that anyone could help!
I know that there are some meters that use tinier drops of blood than others, and also that people can use sites other than fingertips with some meters (usually the ones that don't require a large blood drop). I have read, however, that sites other than fingertips can be less accurate. As to how different the glucose reading would be, it probably depends on the meter and perhaps on the size of blood drop.
Home glucose checking is designed to only give a ballpark snapshot of what our blood glucose is at that moment of time. Blood flow through the body is dynamic and the chemistry, including glucose, at any given point will very from one moment to the next. That said unless you took a blood sample and tested it many times (not taking a new sample for each test, thus a different blood chemistry) the variance in readings you recorded are normal.
s interesting that you question the accuracy of your glucose meter for I was reading the September 2008 issues of Consumer Reports that rated both blood-pressure monitors and blood-glucose meters. Only one blood-glucose meter scored excellent overall and also scored the highest for consistency- the Johnson & Johnson Lifescan OneTouch Ultra Mini. The Ultra Mini was followed by Ascensia Contour, ReliOn Ultima (WalMart), and Accu-check Compact Plus.
First, any prandial test (fasting and after meal) captures glucose only at test time, not yesterday, two days ago, or a three weeks ago. It really doesn't tell a doctor what is going with your glucose levels at all times of the day. Home glucose meters are good to see how well one is managing their glucose levels. Having scaled results (high to low, or normal to near high or above) calls for an A1c test to see the entire picture.
An A1c test measures your glucose going back three months.
Your home meter [test kit] could also be whacked giving you inaccurate test results. Not all meters are accurate as I stated in my Medhelp Forum July 19, 2009 post, "Tighter Standard Needed on Diabetes Meters". To back this claim, in September 2008 Consumer Reports, a US based nonprofit organization, test results showed "The OneTouch UltraMini [Johnson & Johnson], the only meter to score excellent overall, also scored the highest for consistency.
These are the times to test
1] preprandial fasting [nothing to eat or drink [except water] for 8-10 hours] - this will provide an insight on how much glucose your liver dumps in anticipation of your awakening energy needed.
2] preprandial [before meal] - this will provide a baseline measurement against how the foods you consumed affected your glucose levels
3] postprandial [2-3 hours after meal] - this is when glucose from foods you consumed plateau in your bloodstream.
Yes, there is a difference. The glucose meter measures blood sugar at that exact moment. The A1C, on the other hand, gives an average of blood sugars for about 2-3 months period. The A1C therefore, gives a lot more significant information but it can also be misleading. For example of someone has a lot of highs, but also a lot of lows, it might average out and look like the person is maintaining a good blood glucose level when they are, in fact, swinging wildly.
I was a little concerned when I started smelling the sweet fruity smell again on my breath. I immediately went to the pharmacy and bought a blood glucose test. I tested myself at 9:15PM and it read 81mg. I wasn't satisfied because I read on the web that it is a sympton of untreated diabetes. I tested again and it read 86mg. I felt a little better. I woke up the next morning and tested again and it read 88mg. For what I read, these readings are normal.
That would be considered AFTER a meal, or postprandial, as WR stated. I think you're getting hung up on the fact that 2-3 hours AFTER one meal may be BEFORE the next meal. Only concentrate on one meal at a time.
How often are you checking your blood sugar at home? Be sure to closely follow the instructions of your doc, don't just choose your own times. Also, be sure to keep a journal of your results. Most glucose meters come with a log book.
First of all the only way you will know if you are iodine deficient is to scratch test the iodine or blood test or hair analysis.
There are several reasons for being hypothyroid...iodine deficiency is only one of them and the rarer one.
Your T3 level is low as well. Was your antibody count within range or high?
I listened to my chiro and tried to do the natural thing for a whole year and got much sicker. I should have never messed around with my thyroid like that.
My doctor ordered blood work, my glucose result was 103. Doc wanted to put me on a Diabetic pill. I told him No, I would watch what I eat and we'd go from there. I used to junk out bad at night; candy, chips, drink regular cokes, ect... Now I drink Diet Coke and I don't eat anywhere near like I used to. I'm probably 10 pounds overweight. I have a physical job. I'm in good health, I have high blood pressure that is controled by meds. I bought a AccuCheck Active tester.
Hi guys.
I'm an 18 year old male and I think I may have diabetes.
First of all, let me just say that I had a full fasting blood test done about 5 months ago and it didn't show anything up, however I didn't have these 'symptoms' then so maybe I should request another blood test?
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