Know Your Diabetes Glucose Monitoring Kit
As we all know, Diabetes is one of the most common disease prevalent over the world these days. The condition in which the body accumulates excess of sugar is termed as diabetes.
There can be two reasons for this, either a problem with secretion and functioning of the Anti Diuretic hormone or the problem with secretion of insulin. The former is called, Diabetes insepidus, Diabetes Mellitus being the latter one. The latter is rather more prevalent and is the matter of concern for almost every second house in the society these days.
There is no miracle drug to totally cure diabetes at once, but what we can do is just keep it under control by imposing a regular check on it by using medicines etc. For this we need monitoring the progress of the disease from time to time. In the busy schedule of the 21st century it is virtually impossible to go to the doctor every time there is a need for testing the blood sugar level. The solutions to these are Glucose monitoring kits.
November is celebrated as the National diabetes awareness month, and what is better than buying a new technologically improved glucose monitoring kit this month, with lots of companies selling them at discounted price.
The most common and used item all over the world is the Accu chek. There are various variants like, Accu chek AVIVA, Accu chek Compact Plus, Free style flash, free style lite, Ascensia Breeze 2, Ascentia contour. Free style freedom meter kit is considered to be using the least amount of blood (3 – 10ml).
Moreover the kit includes, 10 test strips, lancing device from Free Style, 10 Lancets, Free style control solution, etc. Accu check Advantage Diabetes monitoring kit contains the blood glucose meter, Adjustable Accu-Chek Softclix Lancet Device (10 lancets), etc. Accu check active diabetes monitoring kits also has a similar composition.
The new Accu chek Compact plus diabetes monitoring kit requires no strip handling and auto calibration is done. There are various combo offers available too, when brought in combination a discount can be availed.
One Touch Ultra 2 Blood Glucose Monitoring System:
It requires just a drop of blood and requires only about 5 seconds to get the result. The back light and the scroll button makes it easier to handle. It can store last 500 records with time and date of checking. Hence, the patient can have a look at the rate of improvement. It has got a simple and unique design and comes in various combo offers. The one touch ultra 2 strips are available separately.
One Touch Ultra Mini Blood Glucose Monitoring System is simple and sleek in design. Only one touch Ultra test strips can be used with it and the result comes within 5 seconds. The whole kit comes with an educational booklet along with category of food which, if taken keeps the blood sugar level low.
Home Diagnostics Sidekick Blood Glucose Testing System, is another one in the similar category. It requires 1 UL of blood sample and less than 10 seconds to give the answer. The blood is generally taken from the forefinger.
However, while using these Diabetes testing kits, you must keep in mind certain simple things:
* Proper instruction should be followed while taking the test at home.
* Each strip should be used only once and after that it should be discarded at a safe place.
* When abnormally low or high results come, then you must repeat the test to confirm.
* Proper medication should be taken only after consultation with the doctor.
Roberto S
http://www.articlesbase.com/medicine-articles/know-your-diabetes-glucose-monitoring-kit-698693.html
admin on February 27th 2010 in Diabetes and Blood Glucose
djsteph_80sflashback responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 1:18 pm #
Alternative to Glucose screening?
Does anybody know if there is an alternative to drinking the glucose for the 1 hour challenge test? I am very sensitive and do not react well to sugar and caffeine– I get stomach pains and heart palpitations. Is there a food or drink equivalent to getting the 50 grams of glucose that the doctors might suggest if you have a hard time with the drink? I’ve heard OJ or jelly beans, but I don’t know if it will yield the same results. Why can’t you just monitor your glucose levels with a diabetes monitor/test strips after eating a high-carb meal to see if it is high? Why is it necessary to have that drink?
tammer responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:20 pm #
Talk to your dr. and tell him your view on it. THEY cant make you take the test its just recomended.
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jess responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:22 pm #
You have to drink it. I know its gross but I work in a hospital and there are no alternatives that I know of. But I would get it over with because if sweet stuff makes you that sick you probably are diabetic and need to know if you need insulin
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hdcrandall responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:24 pm #
I just had my third baby 5 months ago and when I was pregnant I really didn’t want to drink that stuff again. My midwives sent me home with a blood glucose monitor and I checked my blood sugar at a certain interval after each meal for about three days. My blood sugar stayed within normal limits so they knew I did not have gestational diabetes.
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starfire978 responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:26 pm #
The problem with using an alternate means of getting the sugar into your bloodstream is this is a timed test. That is why it is glucose in a suspended liquid. They know exactly how long it should take to get into your blood stream and how long to wait to measure your blood sugar to check for how well insulin is being used in your sytem.
The problem with using another form of sugar is that it is not glucose but another form of sugar in most foods. Also if it is a solid it won’t get into your blood stream as fast. Luckily there is no caffiene in the crud you have to drink for the test. This is how they do a controlled test to be sure you and the baby is okay.
Make sure you drink it cold and if you have a choice between the orange or lemon lime trust me go with the orange…Drink it as cold as you can and get it down fast since it is still gross.
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mystic_eye_cda responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:28 pm #
Jelly Beans instead of Glucola for GD Screen
http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/jellybns.html
Article by Henci Goer on the Uselessness of Standard Management of Gestational Diabetes
http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/gdhgoer.html
Gestational Diabetes
http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/gestdiab.html
Gestational Diabetes Screening – A Summary
http://www.plus-size-pregnancy.org/Prenatal%20Testing/prenataltest-gdscreensummary.htm
Diagnotsic Tests Of The Third Trimester
http://www.mothering.com/articles/pregnancy_birth/birth_preparation/prenatal-testing-side.html
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katesolo responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:30 pm #
That drink is necessary because it works fast and they can check you within an hour of you drinking it. If you have problems with high amounts of sugar you might already be diabetic or allergic. Talk to your doctor, as far as I know there is no way around it. It doesn’t taste the best, but hopefully you won’t have to go through 4 hours of it like I did after not successfully getting through the first hour. Good luck.
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JustMe responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:32 pm #
I agree, talk to your doctor. As a diabetic myself, I can tell you that if you don’t react well to sugar, OJ or jelly beans will not sit better with you than the glucose drink – sugar is sugar is sugar (not to mention you’re right, it’s not a valid test).
The glucose drink is standard in diagnosing diabetes, but there are other ways as you have suggested. And if you were going the testing route, you would need to monitor after many meals, not just a high-carb one. It’s not necessarily the carbs that would make your blood sugar jump if you are diabetic.
Good luck! (:
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jbenishmlt responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:34 pm #
You can have your test done using other forms of sugar if the lab that you go to has tested and approved that method. But I hate to break it to you but if 50g glucola is going to affect your because you "don’t react well to sugar" than the same dosage of glucose in a different form, i.e. jelly beans or OJ, is going to affect you the same way. Or at least it should. If it doesn’t than your sugar problems are in your mind. The jelly bean dosage if the same amount of sugar that you would have to drink in the orange glucola beverage.
It is necessary to have the drink because we know exactly how much glucose is entering your body. That is the only way that we can establish normal ranges and what your result should be if everything is ok.
On that note. You can request skipping the test. You don’t have to do it. No one can make you. Second, please go in fasting (nothing to eat or drink for at least 8 hours). Most Doc’s don’t make their patients fast and I can’t tell you the number of times that ppl have to come back for a 3 hour GTT because they ate a big meal and then came right to the lab and had their test making their results falsely elevated. Third thing is. I have rarely ever seen a woman have an adverse reaction to the the glucola drink and then on the rare times that they do typically it is vomiting and sweats.
Good luck.
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8 years in a Hospital Laboratory
njyecats responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:36 pm #
personally, i just didn’t do the test this time. Yeah, it may not have been the smartest thing I did, but I’m not complaining.
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angel_emz_162 responded on 27 Feb 2010 at 6:38 pm #
i was told by my doctor that you have to have the drink. but i am not sure what other doctors think. the drink has the 50g of glucose & the rest is just soda water.the thing is, sugar & caffeine do that to you, no matter what, the test is going to be the same because you need to have that amount of glucose. you cant monitor it like diabetes because they are 2 different tests. really, there is no way out of doing the screening. if the test does come back positive for gestational diabetes, you will have to take another screening where you have 75 g of glucose & the test goes for 3 hours. im not sure if they take blood every hour, or once the 3 hours is up.
sugar does the same thing to me & my test came back fine, my level was 5.0.
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