So which is it then

sheepie123 said:

Hi Folks,

Ive have been using CodeFree for a while now and Ive been getting readings in the 5s to 6s

I then decided to buy the AccuChek Avia and run the tests at the same time.

So far the AccuChek seems more stable with blood sugars being 0.1 0.2 different across several tests / fingers
Where as code free swings 1 - 1.5 mol across fingers.

I have taken my blood there and Accu Chek says I am 4.2 mmol where as CodeFree says I am 6.5

So the big question thats a massive difference so which is more accurate? I tend to believe the Accu-Chek as there are times with both meters agree but for the most part CodeFree seems least stable with results.

I took 4 tests once with codefree and Got 4.2 - 7 mmol across 4 tessts with the same drop of blood.

I took 4 tests with AccuChek and got 0.4 difference across all tests.

Is my code free broken? Which would you believe?

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I think most people on here say the codefree reads higher. Not sure what else to advise you.

Snap! I have an Aviva and a Codefree too. I find the Codefree reads high and the Aviva is more in line with my hba1c results. I don't think home testing kits are bang on accurate but are helpful for showing trends. My advice would be to stick to juts one to see the trends and not mix them.

No meter is accurate and are allowed to be plus minus 15% but need to be more accurate at hypo levels.

Many type 2 forum members have reported that codefree reads high and accucheck reads a little low compared to lab tests.

I use contour products which I find slightly high apart from the odd pot which is spot on. I always get a pleasant surprise at lab tests.

Please do not fixate on individual readings but on the trends.

I focus on the gap between the pre and post meals readings.

serenity648 said:

I focus on the gap between the pre and post meals readings.

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Me too.

Hi sheepie123 I have done tests on three meters 2of my own and one at surgery all different meters all different test results but they shouldn't be that far different to each other as you say you're code free may have developed a fault so I would stick to the accu chek for the time being and perhaps get a new code free for spare all the best.

serenity648 said:

I focus on the gap between the pre and post meals readings.

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Me three

Actual levels are less important than big swings up and down..

Accu Cheks do read a bit low (or at least my Accu Chek Mobile seems to) and Codefree is notorious for reading a bit high and can be inconsistent between tubs.

It is a mistake to use 2 different meters as it only leads to confusion.

I also have a Tee2 which reads similarly to the Aviva. I should use it and save a bomb - but I am kind of attached to my Aviva

Individual tests are not used in the scheme of things.
It is the trends that you see over time.
The single test is always different to other because of conditions.
What finger! Washed or unwashed, dry or damp, temperature of fingers!
Winter, spring summer, Autumn. Cold or hot or in between.
Such as time, morning afternoon, evening.
Portion size and ingredients.
Different combinations, fats, carbs, protein.
You can't always clock watch.
Fasting blood glucose levels.
And of course dependent on how high our glucose, insulin and other hormonal levels especially in the menstrual cycle. (Womans things!) With how high your insulin resistance levels are!

There are probably more, but you get the drift!

Quite often in my extensive experience of testing and recording everything in my food diary, the amount of discrepancies and weird results are many.

So why do we become so dependent on them.
Trends!
If you look at your food diary and do a graph and if the foods you have tried probably many times, show a downward trend then what you are doing is effective. If it's going up, something is causing it, then should be either taken out or reduced in portion size.

A single individual test is a snapshot of what is happening in that moment.
A food diary with the right information can give you an overall picture of what you need to do.

Best wishes.

Avocado Sevenfold said:

Snap! I have an Aviva and a Codefree too. I find the Codefree reads high and the Aviva is more in line with my hba1c results. I don't think home testing kits are bang on accurate but are helpful for showing trends. My advice would be to stick to juts one to see the trends and not mix them.

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You could have three meters and average all three! A bit like the guy who is redoing the Wainwright Cumbrian fell walking books! He has three GPS readers, so if there is a descrepency between two of them, he checks his third GPS and goes with the best consensus! Derek

lindisfel said:

You could have three meters and average all three!

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Good idea, Derek, but I'm not a millionaire!

sheepie123 said:

Im thinking of going with a 3rd to get a consensus as 4.2 and 6.2 is a wide gap and if one reads a little low and the other HIGH then what should I expect 5.2?

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Why? What would you do if the third was also 2mmol/l higher or lower? Further confusion. Stick to one. The numbers are virtually irrelevant. Over time, rogue numbers work themselves out in the averages. Concentrate on the rises from before to after, keep records and look for trends. Whichever meter you use will produce trends.

sheepie123 said:

Im thinking of going with a 3rd to get a consensus as 4.2 and 6.2 is a wide gap and if one reads a little low and the other HIGH then what should I expect 5.2?

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You will have to go on Warfarin Sheepie so you only have stick yourself once! Derek

Be aware that testing two different fingers can give you different results. Sometimes they're similar, sometimes they quite different. If they're quite different, check that the fingers clean and warm.

Avocado Sevenfold said:

I also have a Tee2 which reads similarly to the Aviva. I should use it and save a bomb - but I am kind of attached to my Aviva

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Same here I like my Aviva Nano

I have a codefree that I rarely use now. Did a test the other day and nearly went into complete meltdown after reading 25.5.
I tried again after hand washing, 25.4 - horrified by this point. I then had a brainwave and asked adult non diabetic daughter to "volunteer" her finger for testing - meter said 24.3.

I need a new meter.

ladybird64 said:

I have a codefree that I rarely use now. Did a test the other day and nearly went into complete meltdown after reading 25.5.
I tried again after hand washing, 25.4 - horrified by this point. I then had a brainwave and asked adult non diabetic daughter to "volunteer" her finger for testing - meter said 24.3.

I need a new meter.

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I have been using my codefree for quite a while now. Mine went haywire when the battery was low. I changed the battery and now all is well again.