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blood testing meters

hawkeyeuk

hawkeyeuk

Member
Messages
24
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Non-insulin injectable medication (incretin mimetics)
has any one been given any advice on how long their meter lasts before it needs replacement. I have had mine a few years (free style lite) and have just started using it on a daily basis due to starting victoza after nearly ten years on tablet medication.
thanks
 
Hello @hawkeyeuk yes I can.
I had mine for over 10 years and I was all over the place with my readings and contacted Optimum who sent me test solutions and it tested fine. They also sent me a new meter free of charge provided I sent the old one back.

For 28 years I did industrial instrumentation and automatic control and calibrated and repaired etc. The part in these meters that gets contaminated is the throw away strip so contamination is not an issue and the rest is electronics so it will last for many years. (unless you drop it or damage it with heat etc.)

The thing to remember with these meters is they measure electrical conductivity or similar and not BS and they only INFER BS. So they can be easily affected by sweat or other minute contamination. If in doubt take a few readings and disregard the odd one and average the rest.

My take on BS meters is they are as rough as old bags, but they give us some clues.
 
Thanks I was thinking along those lines but it's reassuring to have it confirmed
 
@forge I find it very difficult to remove a strip from its little storage tub without getting a fingerprint on the copper contact bit.

Is this likely to affect my readings, O Expert? :)
 
To be fair the best system I have tried is the Darin system as the strips all fit in one unit and they all go in one direction and there is enough of the strip exposed so you can grab a strip
 
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