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ASHRA

Member
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5
Why when doing blood checks I get 3 different results. Do I add them and divide by 3 to get an average?
 
Hi @ASHRA
The usual reason for testing more than once is an unexpected result - to eliminate things like fruit juice on fingers, or a bad test strip.
So I feel it's difficult to answer you without more information about what you are doing when you are doing it and why you are doing it.
 
I find that I sometimes need to wash my hands before testing. I make food for others in my house and that can stay on my fingers and cause my results to not be accurate.

Usually a quick wash and dry and I get consistent readings regardless of hand etc.
 
ASHRA said:
Why when doing blood checks I get 3 different results. Do I add them and divide by 3 to get an average?
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That depends. If you are talking about differences of around 1mmol then yes, use the average. If you mean one was at 4, one at 8 and one at 15mmol, then no, don't use the average. It's not unusual to get 3 different readings taken in quick succession, on the same finger. What were your 3 readings?
 
ASHRA said:
Why when doing blood checks I get 3 different results. Do I add them and divide by 3 to get an average?
Click to expand...
Most (all I think) meters have a error of margin in the order of 15% so differences aren't unusual

If you have washed and dried your hands it is likely you don't need more than one test. When I get something I don't expect it's usually as I have forgot to do that and the level is artificially high so I repeat

It's not cheap to test, so I try and avoid repeat
 
I tested recently soon after eating a little orange, an easy peeler. I hadn't washed my hands, and the reading was sky-high, well beyond my usual range. Washed my hands, tried again - back to normal range. So the lesson is, wash and rinse carefully pre-testing.
 
ASHRA said:
Why when doing blood checks I get 3 different results. Do I add them and divide by 3 to get an average?
Click to expand...
What sort of difference are you seeing?
Are you testing immediately, one after the other?
Are you using the same meter for each test?
 
Mr_Pot said:
What sort of difference are you seeing?
Are you testing immediately, one after the other?
Are you using the same meter for each test?
Click to expand...
Sorry, I'm new to this diagnosed 2 weeks ago level of 55 told by GP to go away lose a few pounds and have bloods done in 3month
Thank you, I'm newly diagnosed, a level of 55, GP told me to go away lose a few pounds and come back in 3 months to be retested. No medicine. With regards to taking blood glucose levels I was informed to do it 3 times and take an average. I now know this was wrong. Would I be correct in saying that I have to take recordings a) first thing in the morning. B) 2 hours after meals c) before bed.
 
I wouldn't dream of saying that you HAVE to do something, but I will make a suggestion and give the reasons for that suggestion.

It is undisputed that when you eat carbohydrates they immediately start to convert into glucose.
Thus the most problematic foods for a Type 2 diabetic ( who tend to have high Blood Glucose because of insulin resistance) are one with carbohydrates (sugars and starches). This is all carbohydrates - even whole grains, fruit and starchy veg such as potato, carrot etc.

So the best (most direct ) way to reduce your Blood Glucose is to reduce the amount of carbs you eat (add in more protein and traditional fats where required so you eat enough calories).

But the problem with carbs is that we are all different in how many and of which types our bodies can tolerate. This is where the BG meter comes in.
At first there is no need to test except for testing the reaction to meals and snacks (but best not to snack just eat meals til comfortably full). The way to do this testing is to keep a food diary of what your meals contain and roughly how much of the carby foods. Use the BG meter by testing just before each meal and then 2hrs after 1st bite.
If the BG rise from the meal is 2mmol or less then that mean is probably OK for your body.

If not, look to reduce the portions of the most carby items or cut them out completely by substituting something less carby. For example Cauliflower and Broccoli make ultra low carb substitutes for rice (cauliflower 'rice' or 'green rice') and mashed cauliflower substitutes for mashed potato, Celeriac makes a good substitute for potato in roast or when raw and shredded for potato or for carrot in salads.
There are bean based spaghettis available in supermarkets such as Aldi. Aubergine can be used for pizza bases or for Lasagne sheets.
 
Riva_Roxaban said:
That's the way I work out averages, was taught that way in skool.
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Me too, but the problem with that is that you could in theory get an average of 7, when in fact you have never had a 7 but plenty of 3s and plenty of 11s both of which may cause their own issues diabetes wise, It's tongue in cheek I know and this post is talking about 3 tests taken at the same time (I think) but it really irks me when they refer to 'averages' when talking about glucose levels/blood pressure/cholesterol etc. Fat lot of use in my opinion.
 
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Something like that will work well. I average those 3 to get my daily average which evens out the bumps. I record daily what I eat and the readings I take at those times. I made my life simpler and cheaper by going to only two meals a day and only testing the evening meal. I eat much the same breakfast each day (English fry up) and know it behaves well so I do not need to keep testing it.
 
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