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Big variations in testing BG levels

  • Thread starter Thread starter AnnieC
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AnnieC

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Can you tell me if when you test for food before and after meals do you go on the first reading you get after eating something new and if that is high do you not eat that food again I ask because I do not test at every meal or even every day just a couple of times a week but I did test after my breakfast today I ate a hard boiled egg, cheese 4 cherry tomatoes some cucumber and a few olives with a slice of Bergen toast I tested just over 2 hours later and my reading was 8.5 I am never that high and should not be with that breakfast which I have many times before with levels in the 5's to low 6's after two hours even with two slices of toast so I tested again a couple of minutes land it was 7.1 and after another 2 minutes or so it was 6.4 three different readings in about 6 minutes so how is that explained That is one reason I stopped testing so much as levels vary so much with the same foods it is confusing I don't do LCHF I have just cut out the sugar stuff and moderate on the starchy carbs
 
If you get a reading that is unexpected, it's a good idea to wash hands and test again. Remember though, these meters are only a guide and are not totally accurate. There are tolerances of approx 15% so your 8.5 could well have been around 7.2 ish ( -15% ). Try the same breakfast another day as there could also be other factors involved, slightly stressed, a little under the weather, the heat etc. So, don't dismiss a meal on one reading. Your breakfast sounds fine BTW.

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Many of the meters have a + 20% accuracy which means in reality that a 5.0 reading could show on a meter as anything between 4.0 and 6.0.
A 10.0 reading can show anything between 8.0 and 12.0. Although not great it's the closest we have at an affordable price at the moment.

I have tried readings using the same meter on the same bleeding hole and got variations like that.
 
What were you before you ate? . The higher you start the higher you will finish.

I get wildly different readings sometimes. I tested 6 times after one meal a few days ago because the first reading was way too high. The second reading was a whole 2mmol/l lower! I did 4 more and they were all in between but no two very close. For my own records, if I test more than once I average the readings. You must wash your hands between each test.
 
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