HSSS
Expert
Such an important message
Such an important messageRemember,. Most docs/hcp are advising you from a position of LEARNED knowledge
perhaps from many years ago, and maybe only a half day course.
On here Members are advising from a position of EARNED knowledge.
Most likely from a few days ago...and learnt over many years
It is an ever evolving learning process.)
I was told just a month ago at the start of taking insulin "Do not test 'after' meals because it will always be high and we are only interested in pre- meal readings and first thing in the morning and last thing at night.
This seems weird to me because I want to know what foods cause my BG to rise and for how long. I am driving 7 - 8 hrs a day every day so MUST test every 2 hrs. Thus I know exactly what foods do what to my BG level and for how long.
How can anybody hope to control their diabetes unless they TEST themselves every day ... several times a day.
There is so much information to absorb on this site and countless other blogs, websites, videos, books.
I have ended up with diabetic info indigestion.
To my mind the MOST important and relevant information is, what do the numbers on 'MY' screen tell me that I need to know.
#Po
No numbers = No Clue!
You are right to want to test after meals even though the medical advice is to wait 2 hours after the after meal spike has leveled out again. THat after meal spike tells you exactly what that meal has done for your blood sugar. It gives you the information you need to modify your diet. I found testing 1 hour after a meal very useful. Soon after meal readings dropped from 13-15 to below 10 as I stopped eating the starchy foods recommended.
Are you on a low carb, healthy fat diet. aka keto?
I don’t test after meals too often these days but will if it’s a meal that is carbier than usual or just to ensure that foods I have often still affect my BS the same way and if it’s convenient I tend to test at the 1, 2 & 3 hour point so that I can see the trend.Hi Ian
I like you often test after 1 hour and again 2hrs after meals. I find it helpful to watch how different foods raise BG levels.
I have tested after 10 mins and again after 20 mins to see how quickly levels can change, and by how much.
So same old story... DN said eat lots of potatoes, rice, etc etc etc. It does not take long looking on the interweb to see how wrong this 'guidance / advice' is .
I am about to lower my carb intake this week from 100g avg a day to 70g. I have not started doing any exercise yet since leaving hospital a month ago. I cut the grass the other day and in less than an hour dropped my BG by half to 4.2.
I do not intend to reduce my carb intake to below this level (70g a day) yet, until I see what the overall effect is over the next week.
Po
I don’t test after meals too often these days but will if it’s a meal that is carbier than usual or just to ensure that foods I have often still affect my BS the same way and if it’s convenient I tend to test at the 1, 2 & 3 hour point so that I can see the trend.
I am in no rush for this happen, however I am also unhappy about getting low readings and having to take something to raise my levels each day.
This is the problem with your current medication that you need to sort out with your nurse/doctor. At the moment you are having to eat to your medication doses, rather than medicate according to what you eat. It is the wrong way round and needs to be sorted.
Thank you saying this... It gives me a good place to begin the conversation. I find it is interesting that often it is only when we know the answers, that we know what questions to ask.
Thank you for your continued support BTW. It is as always greatly appreciated.
Po
Good luck with persuading them your meds need reviewing according to your eating habits Let us know how you go on.
I am meeting with the consultant in a couple of weeks time. It will be very interesting to hear what he has to say regarding this.
I have dropped my Insulin down to 7 units and am still hitting readings below 4. I am/was currently eating 100g carbs a day. Starting today I have dropped to 80g a day. If my reading also drop ( As I feel they will) I will have to ring them up and tell/ask them if it is OK to drop my Insulin to 6 and monitor the results for the next week.
I have never eaten so well... AND I have never felt so well!
I have given up alcohol, chocolate, biscuits, cake, crisps, sweets, almost all potatoes (I now use cauli mash/rice Mmmm!)
Plus deserts of all kinds... Apart from my new found favorite, Jelly & a couple of teaspoons of extra thick double cream.
I have found it so easy to cut these things out of my diet.
Po
You may be better off starting a new thread. Strips are the running cost of your meter. I used to use CodeFree as that had some problems with a dodgy batch and changed to the Tee2. Strips slightly more expensive but far more accurate.Hi,
As a newly diagnosed T2D (I haven't even seen a GP yet, just their 'Diabetic Nurse'), I have not yet been told anything about Testing or Not Testing.
It seems like nearly everybody on here tests their BG. I did look at both Ketone and Glucose test strips/sticks on Amazon, but they always seem to have negative reviews saying that they either don't work at all or are inaccurate. Do I need to wait for a 'DESMOND appointment' or a GP appointment before I get any official information?
I have not read all of this thread, but near the start people were saying that they couldn't afford the test strips if not on prescription. Is reliable equipment and consumables really so expensive that patients can't afford it privately?
If not, is it allowed for somebody to point me in the right direction to obtain it? If it is against the rules, then please let me know.
Hi,
As a newly diagnosed T2D (I haven't even seen a GP yet, just their 'Diabetic Nurse'), I have not yet been told anything about Testing or Not Testing.
It seems like nearly everybody on here tests their BG. I did look at both Ketone and Glucose test strips/sticks on Amazon, but they always seem to have negative reviews saying that they either don't work at all or are inaccurate. Do I need to wait for a 'DESMOND appointment' or a GP appointment before I get any official information?
I have not read all of this thread, but near the start people were saying that they couldn't afford the test strips if not on prescription. Is reliable equipment and consumables really so expensive that patients can't afford it privately?
If not, is it allowed for somebody to point me in the right direction to obtain it? If it is against the rules, then please let me know.
Thanks Bluetit1802 and XfieldOK,
I have ordered the Tee2 and test strips.
I didn't realise you have to set up an account with Spirit first, so had them in my basket before I set up account.
Then discovered it charges tax even though I have ticked on account that I qualify for VAT exempt.
Still that is no big deal provided that it works correctly when I re-order.
Snap. Listen to your nurseMy diabetic nurse told me to test and record results, my diabetic GP told me not to. I give up!
Thing is though, the nurse has to get the script signed by the GP for testing disposables and my GP says no. The strips are so expensive aren't they.Snap. Listen to your nurse
I’m incredibly lucky. My nurse says test. She is able, as a nurse practitioner, to sign them. However the way it works at my practice is whoever is duty dr signs repeat requests. So other gp’s including locums have also signed the repeat prescriptions once it was placed on the system by her without question despite more than one of them individually being out of the ark. Makes me wonder if they look beyond the list of what’s on repeat before signing though!Thing is though, the nurse has to get the script signed by the GP for testing disposables and my GP says no. The strips are so expensive aren't they.
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