New to monitoring

[Gourmande]

Hello everyone


After months of procrastination I have bought my Codefree meter. It took quite a few tries to get the hang of it (I have to put my hand in hot water and massage the finger to get enough blood, even on level 5 of the lancing device).


With two HbA1c results of 6.4 (47) I am quite literally on the borderline of diabetes and it feels like walking on a cliff edge – one slip and over I go.


Anyway, here are my results for the first few days. They seem to show very little movement although this week I have gone back to low-carb dieting. All the weight I put back over the last couple of months has gone straight to my middle.


Day 1:

Fasting/breakfast – failed

Pre-lunch 6.4, Post lunch 6.1 (2 hours)

Pre-supper 6.8, Post-supper 6.7


Day 2:

Fasting 6.5, Post breakfast 6.7

No lunchtime test

Pre-supper 5.5, Post supper 6.0


Day 3 (Today)

Fasting 6.1, Post breakfast 6.0


I think the key to getting my HbA1c down is going to be losing the extra weight. I would really like to get down to normal levels and away from that cliff-edge. And is there any way of targeting the waistline, where all my fat seems to be?


Also, any other tips on getting more blood – I’ve been reading that squeezing the finger can affect the results but I have difficulty getting any without doing this. Is massaging downwards towards the tip of the finger the same thing as ‘squeezing’?

 

[Ian DP]

Your pre and post testing results are very good, they show that you are not spiking after eating, if put on a graph, they would show a nice smooth line. This is (in my opinion) purely down to you low carbing..... And I can see a downward trend starting. If you are having the Same meal at breakfast everyday, then really no need to test post meal every day( as you know your BG will not rise significantly). Important to test before and after a 'new meal'....and look for any rises.
Write them all down in a book I use a cheap cash book and add extra columns and use one line for each day. It's also a goo idea to write down notes eg if BG rise, what food taken or maybe exercise or travelling, eating out illness etc.

I wouldn't worry too much about squeezing, try pressing the finger pricker harder against the finger... By pressing the finger pricker harder I have gone down from the 3 setting to 1.

 

[Lamont D]

Those results are fine as Ian has said.

The only way to try and lower your blood glucose levels is to have a walk for half an hour or so. Just a small increase in moderate exercise has big benefits.

 

[Gourmande]

Thank you both. Yes I am quite pleased as I have tested tonight pre-meal and got a reading of 5, so there is a downward trend. I also moved the gauge down on my lancer to 4 and succeeded in getting a reading, so hopefully it just needs me to practice more. As you suggest Ian, I am probably not going to bother with every meal, but just get some kind of baseline over the next few days and then add in foods one at a time to see the effect they have on me.

I have started exercising more this week also, so as nosher suggests, this is probably contributing to the downward movement on the readings.

I am really glad I have finally started monitoring. It's taken me ages to accept I need to do it, but now I've started it really inspires me to try hard to get my levels down.

Thanks again

 

[Lamont D]

I can only get my prescription of test strips because I have to test, test, test to see if I react differently as part of keeping control of my condition.

If you have the knowledge of what different foods do to you then testing becomes a little unnecessary.

Control is the key, if your body likes what you're eating, it will respond by lowering your fasting levels and you will lose weight.

 

[Gourmande]

I was quite pleased that before dinner last night I had a low reading of 5. Then I experimented with having quite a big portion of cauliflower with my meat. Post dinner it was 6.2 at 2 hours.

Although that isn't particularly high, it is still quite a big jump isn't it? I did feel a bit peckish late evening and had a couple of squares of 80% chocolate at about 10.00. Then decided to test again at 4 hours and got a reading of 6.9.

None of these readings are terribly high, so I'm not worried about them, but I am not sure how to interpret last night's results. Could the chocolate have stopped the result coming down? Is cauliflower to be avoided more than carrots (which only caused 0.5 increase the other evening).

Sorry if it's a fuss about nothing but I just want to learn how to interpret the figures.

 

[Lamont D]

Over time you will.see a pattern happening.
If you keep a food diary and record everything, you can see what particular foods do to you.

I wouldn't worry about a small drop. I would stop eating foods that after 2 hours are above 2mmols above your pre meal reading.

Test, record, test record, that way you will see rogue readings as well.

 

[Ian DP]

I am normally ok with cauliflower, but not cauliflower cheese (unless I make it myself with cream and cheese - most sauces contain added wheat and thus carbs). A large portion of cauliflower may well have more carbs than a small portion of carrots - portion control.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Hi,

Those readings aren't at all bad, and you are showing very little rise between before and after, so your meals must be good ones for you. The aim is to keep any rise down to under 2mmol/, ideally under 1.5mmol/l and you are doing this, so well done. Just a point of interest. Because our insulin resistance improves as the day goes on, we tend to see our lowest readings before our evening meal, and that is what is happening to you. Keep on like this, add some exercise, lose some weight, and those numbers will come right down.

 

[Gourmande]

Thank you everyone for your encouraging responses. I think I would have got quite different readings a few weeks ago - since Christmas I have been on a 'denial' binge, but buying the meter has forced me to think again about what I am eating.

I think Ian's point about portion control is relevant. It's not something I've bothered about before, as most of the low carb diets don't emphasise this a lot, The message seems to be 'eat as much as you like of the permitted foods'. But in any case, cauliflower is a carbohydrate food, so I should not eat too much. I think portion control may be what is holding me back in my weight loss efforts.