Random readings

[spurs101]

HI, i'm new to testing my blood sugar levels. Tested this morning and had so many different readings. 7, 13, 11, 10

All over the place. I washed my hands and done it again but each time different.

What would cause that? Are the monitors accurate. It's a finger prick one

 

[kim#mimi]

Are these reading at different time during the morning?

 

[spurs101]

Are these reading at different time during the morning?

No they were literally one after the other.

 

[KennyA]

HI, i'm new to testing my blood sugar levels. Tested this morning and had so many different readings. 7, 13, 11, 10

All over the place. I washed my hands and done it again but each time different.

What would cause that? Are the monitors accurate. It's a finger prick one

A glucometer is permitted to be 5% inaccurate 95% of the time. So a true blood glucose value of (eg) 12mmol/l could give acceptable results of anywhere from 12.6 to 11.4. One in twenty results on average may well be totally outside that 5% inaccuracy range. And while you're testing your liver is reacting to your stress and adjusting your blood glucose., which can rise or fall fairly quickly. And you don't say whether you'd eaten, or exercised, because those can affect your levels as well.

If I got those sorts of results I'd be guessing that my actual BG was somewhere around 11 or 12. But overall it shows in my opinion that it's unwise to take too much from one reading or set of readings. What I prefer to do with fingerprick testing is build up a picture of how I respond to particular foods rather than find out what my BG is at any particular moment, which doesn't tell me all that much.

If you are interested in looking at a fuller picture of your blood glucose changes over longer periods of time you might try a constant glucose monitor. These also have a level of inaccuracy, and measure glucose in interstitial fluid rather than blood, but can give you a better idea of the normal variation in your blood glucose levels. There's loads of images of CGM graphs on the internet, and many are from non-diabetic people - and they can have normal large variations too.

Edit: I was a bit distracted I think and I've used the allowable 5% inaccuracy for the HbA1c test rather than the allowable 15% inaccuracy for a glucometer. My apologies. It sort of adds to the argument - a true value of 12% from a glucometer could show as a result anywhere in the range 10.2 to 13.8. In other words the higher three of your readings are essentially the same.

 

[In Response]

A glucometer is permitted to be 5% inaccurate 95% of the time.

I think the standard is within 15% accuracy 95% of the time.

 

[spurs101]

just seemed so odd that the readings were literally one after the other and they were so different

 

[kim#mimi]

just seemed so odd that the readings were literally one after the other and they were so different

I've had the same in the past..

 

[Melgar]

Your blood sugars constantly fluctuate to a lesser or greater degree depending on a great number of factors, physical factors such as food and fluids, environmental factors such as temperature and phycological factors such as stress and anxiety. There are numerous things that affect your blood sugars. Your body is a finely tuned machine, correcting all these variants 24/7 so your blood sugars will fluctuate. As has already been mentioned blood measuring instruments have an acceptable degree of error To add a variant into the testing. A CGM would demonstrate this for you. Ed to add to my response.

 

[Melgar]

I have an example of how testing and then testing again over and over can have a big impact. A few years back I tested my blood pressure, it was slightly raised. I tested my BP again, it was even higher, so I tested it again, this time it had jumped to something like 100/160. Frightened I called 811 (the Canadian medical line) I spoke to a nurse and she asked me to test my BP again, it read 110/170. She called an ambulance and I was carted off to hospital. I lay in a hospital bed, the Dr came in and told me that my anxiety from testing has caused my BP to shoot up. He then told me a story from back when he was a med student. One of their fellow med students blood pressure was slightly raised. All the med students , including the Dr attending me, ribbed him. His blood pressure rose to such a degree he was admitted to hospital. There actually nothing wrong with his blood pressure. Like me anxiety had driven up our blood pressure.

Continually testing over and over can create a situation where our bodies become angst and that starts off a whole load of chemicals to be released In our bodies. Edited - grammar