It was definitely a fully qualified (UK) MD, my family doctor, who said that finger pricking was a waste of time because unless this is done before and then every half hour after eating it is virtually impossible to know when spikes occur and how high they go. The test strips and/or the meters are not very accurate, with a variance of up to 15%. This is potentially a significant difference.
In the range that we usually aim for 6.9 could really be 7.9 which is 0.9 or 11% above a maximum pre-meal target of 7.0. At the other end someone could have reading too high when they are actually becoming dangerously low. The Freestyle Libre, if I remember correctly, averages 97% accuracy in a range from about 4.0 to 13.0. If a reading is getting close to these, the meter advises that a blood test should be done.
Thanks
@Stephen Lewis
a great deal of info as you say, and blessed that the majority of costs are being met..(good planning by you perhaps, but still blessed it's to hand for such a disease.).
while you make good claims and justified i believe for the cgm..the truth about meter accuracy i can't dispute, the manufacturers suggest a variance is in each meter. and it's dicussed in many posts re meters.
However i'd still suggest that the premise of don't test is wrong on a few levels.
least of which is as i mentioned previous.
i am all for differences of opinion, but here i find myself clashing into your assumption (i couldn't see it refuted ? )
that testing is a waste of time..if not done on a cgm..at i think we agree, prohibitive cost to the many.
i appreciate we are all different in our means, needs & reactions to food because of our very own health and other medical issues we may have..but that idea still appalls me, sorry to say.
i COULD pay for the CGM for a few months..
BUT i couldn't really justify the cost ongoing, if i'm honest , when the meter is a much more cost effective method AND as you 2nd post says, i am having decent success..(thank you
)
I wish all T2D had the luxury here of test meters and strips..and the holy grail of CGM's for everybody..
but the T1D's needs here are greater, imho..once they all have one gratis..happy days
then on to us T2's, please doctors..(sound very TERMINATOR, doesn't it..LoL)
if i could liken it to some other OLD tech.
i am on a ship, throwing out a weight to test how deep the waters are in any given harbour or bay i do NOT know.
CGM users are more lucky to have full on sonar probing the depths, so are much more secure in their direction.
But surely ANY measure that stops or aids a ship from running aground is better then just blind faith, until that moment the ship IS lost or damage incurred.
and we certainly shouldn't be dissuading those who know so little, when asking for guidance by giving the impression that only the wealthy or those lucky enough COULD save/improve their health
When clearly despite it's drawbacks, another method IS much more easily accessible, AND is achieving great things in regards to helping SO many reduce their A1c, (HBA1C here in UK ) and in many cases placing their T2D into remission.
For me i have a corridor in my mind of where i want my BG to be..it's between 4 and 8
i can reasonably test to find the foods that bash my BG into the walls of that corridor
OR
i could hope i eat the better foods that stop my bg's rising,
but as i have found out, the rises are very rarely noticeable when they are happening, the only way i could possibly have known/learned what foods DO that and avoid them in future... WAS by testing.
i wish you well in your ongoing journey
i shall watch your name when i see any of the shiny CGM fleet hove into view and hope your doing well.
Do please wave at any fleet of trawlermen, chugging along, i maybe be amongst them....and wish us well too.
we might be using old methods, but are on the same mission.
after all no one likes looking at the wrecks of those that failed to test the waters, before setting sail,
without a small judder in there bones and a silent prayer of.. 'RiP...Thank god that wasn't me '
Tl;Dr.
Testing by ANY means is good.
if not by CGM... then TEST using a meter.
Far better to know a little and avoid health issues
then to blissfully know nothing and leave yourself open to the progressive nature of the
disease and it's full compliment of complications and issues.
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