BG Meter Recommendations

[IanBish]

Hi, I thought I saw a link here about obtaining blood glucose meters VAT-free, but I can't seem to find it now.

I'd like some recommendations for a simple, fairly inexpensive, non-CGM meter please.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Antje77]

Tagging @Rachox for you, she'll post her information here.

 

[IanBish]

Tagging @Rachox for you, she'll post her information here.

Thanks. Also, how do I find out which make of test strips are available on prescription?

 

[Rachox]

Thanks for the tag @Antje77 . Hi @IanBish , I don’t have any info on what strips are available on prescription but in any case type 2s are extremely unlikely to get testing kit on prescription. However
here’s some info on UK meters, and to be clear I have no commercial connections with any of the companies mentioned.



HOME HEALTH have the Gluco Navii, which is a fairly new model and seems to be getting good reviews.

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-produ...ose-meter-test-strips-choose-mmol-l-or-mg-dl/



Links to the strips for future orders:

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/glucose-navii-blood-glucose-test-strips-50-strip-pack/



Then they sell the older SD Code Free, details to be found here!

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/codefree-blood-glucose-monitoring-system-mmoll-or-mgdl/





SPIRIT HEALTHCARE have a meter called the Tee2 + which is quite popular:

https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...e2-blood-glucose-meter?variant=19264017268793



The strips are to be found here:

https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...py-of-tee2-test-strips?variant=19264017367097



If there is a choice of units of measurement then ‘mmol/L’ are the standard units in the UK, ‘mg/dl’ in the US, other countries may vary.



Don’t forget to check the box if you have pre diabetes or diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for all meters and strips)

 

[Deleted member 574368]

Hello

Being T2 the meter won't help you as all you will see is peaks and troughs and be unable to do anything about them. Follow what you have been told about diet and exercise and buy a copy of the GI index so you can understand what you eat and how it may effect you.

 

[Rachox]

Being T2 the meter won't help you as all you will see is peaks and troughs and be unable to do anything about them

I, and many here will disagree with this statement. Yes you will see what spikes you, but you learn from those readings. You reduce carbs in that meal or avoid it in the future. Type 2s using a meter learn what their body tolerates and can watch, hopefully, downward trends which is encouraging. Or indeed the opposite, if numbers are trending upwards, then they can take action straight away, rather than waiting 6 months for their next HbA1c.

Edit for typo.

 

[Deleted member 574368]

Thats ok I appreciate you may want to know. However as I said once you know theres nothing you can do about it other than worry. Not sure where you are but test strips can be an expensive hobby. The HBA1C is a minimal cost item to the NHS if you are in the UK and if you have concerns about the frequency discuss it with your doctor/DSN

 

[Pipp]

Thats ok I appreciate you may want to know. However as I said once you know theres nothing you can do about it other than worry. Not sure where you are but test strips can be an expensive hobby. The HBA1C is a minimal cost item to the NHS if you are in the UK and if you have concerns about the frequency discuss it with your doctor/DSN

For people with T2, especially when newly diagnosed, testing with a meter is a great way to be able to monitor how food consumed affects our blood glucose levels. We don’t need to wait and worry until the next HbA1c test to be able to take action for ourselves to tweak our diets, and take control. Plenty can be done by the individual, rather than depending on HCPs to advise following (if we are lucky) thevtwice yearly, possibly only annual reviews.

Unfortunately, NHS guidelines for us not to test have, seemingly, been made due to the cost of precribing the test strips. This is why so many of our members with T2 are proctive and self fund the meters and strips. The advice given by @Rachox is sound advice on economical way to afford this. After monitoring for a few months many of us can reduce the use of the meter, as we have determined which foods and drinks are causing the spikes.

 

[Lakeslover]

Thats ok I appreciate you may want to know. However as I said once you know theres nothing you can do about it other than worry. Not sure where you are but test strips can be an expensive hobby. The HBA1C is a minimal cost item to the NHS if you are in the UK and if you have concerns about the frequency discuss it with your doctor/DSN

Once I know there is most definitely something I can do about it. I can change my diet to exclude or reduce the items which cause a spike. This is how many type 2s on this forum use a meter or a libre To improve their HbA1c.

 

[KennyA]

Hello

Being T2 the meter won't help you as all you will see is peaks and troughs and be unable to do anything about them. Follow what you have been told about diet and exercise and buy a copy of the GI index so you can understand what you eat and how it may effect you.

I disagree. The meter is an essential item - it will tell you which foods in particular quantities have the biggest impacts on blood glucose. It will show you the impact of exercise. It will tell you what your liver does in morning to raise your blood glucose. And there's quite a bit you can do with that information. Unlike GI, which makes no discernable difference to me.

If I still followed what I've been told - by the NHS, the media, the government, friends - on diet and exercise I'd have diabetic blood glucose levels and be >60lbs heavier.

 

[Deleted member 574368]

Thats fair enough personal life experience counts for a lot, the thing that confuses me is if you have a BG of say 20 when you test what can you do about it.

 

[Pipp]

Thats fair enough personal life experience counts for a lot, the thing that confuses me is if you have a BG of say 20 when you test what can you do about it.

By self testing , should I have such a high BG, I would know about it immediately. With a level as high as 20 I would seek an urgent consultation with GP. Would probably need more medication. If I hadn’t tested and had to wait for next review and HbA1c then as I currently only get reviews and checks annually by nurse, a lot of damage could have occured in the interim.

 

[Hopeful34]

@mark.armstrong
You might find it interesting to read some of the type 2 threads, and see how using a meter for regular testing before meals, and 2 hours after the first bite, has enabled a lot of people with type 2, to put their diabetes into remission. Without testing, they wouldn't have been able to do that, as they wouldn't have known which foods were ok for them to eat.

 

[Deleted member 574368]

I am intersted and follow theT2 issues quite closely! Some of the differences are an eye opener as I always considered T2 to be easier to manage. However in certain aspects I can see it isn't

 

[lilxamz]

Thats fair enough personal life experience counts for a lot, the thing that confuses me is if you have a BG of say 20 when you test what can you do about it.

I'm not currently diagnosed with any diabetes but am waiting for my HbA1c to come back, testing for type 2.

I have a Blood Glucose monitor and on Tuesday this week my reading after dinner was 23.6 I relaxed on the sofa and drank a ton of water, within the hour my bloods were 20.1. The next day I dropped off a urine sample to the GP for them to check for Ketones (negative) and demanded the HbA1c that they claimed I didn't need be booked so had the test on Thursday. There are things we can do

 

[Deleted member 574368]

Only had two events where ketones have been involved, both were recorded with finger prick one off the scale 32+ and the other needed a visit to hospital and I have no recall of readings or events.

 

[KennyA]

Thats fair enough personal life experience counts for a lot, the thing that confuses me is if you have a BG of say 20 when you test what can you do about it.

Like I say, you don't eat the food that put you there. I appreciate that getting a high reading is a different thing for T1s, which is why I wouldn't try to advise T1 people on how they should be managing their conditions.

If I hadn't changed my food, and got a (confirmed) reading like that, I would be going to A&E asap because something would be very wrong.

 

[Lakeslover]

Like I say, you don't eat the food that put you there. I appreciate that getting a high reading is a different thing for T1s, which is why I wouldn't try to advise T1 people on how they should be managing their conditions.

If I hadn't changed my food, and got a (confirmed) reading like that, I would be going to A&E asap because something would be very wrong.

I agree type 1 and type 2 are different conditions and it is a worthwhile reminder that we should all be careful about giving advice outside our own knowledge And experience.

 

[Hopeful34]

Being T2 the meter won't help you as all you will see is peaks and troughs and be unable to do anything about them. Follow what you have been told about diet and exercise and buy a copy of the GI index so you can understand what you eat and how it may effect you.

If you're 'following the type 2 issues quite closely' I don't understand this post, saying a meter won't help.

 

[Hiitsme]

I was so fortunate as my surgery gave me a meter and 200 test strips at a time. Later my GP said it was only as he was convinced I would be going on insulin. Instead I was able to use the meter and work out what foods my body could manage so this must have saved the NHS money. Type 2 controlled by diet and walking.