Tracedemain1967
Newbie
- Messages
- 1
Hi, I take 500mg metformin once daily and have been for 7 years, but not once has the doctor told me to check sugar levels or given me a machine to do so. Do you think I should ask x
Doctors don't usually offer meters to patients who aren't on insulin, as the NHS won't pay for them. Most T2's here self-fund. It is invaluable in knowing where you're at, how you're doing, and most importantly, what certain foods do, so you know what is going to spike you and what's a better choice to eat. If you do go shopping for a meter, testing works like this: Some people like to test their fasting bloodsugars in the morning. I don't usually, because my dawn phenomenon is usually present, and I already know that. Old news. But that's a choice you can make, especially when you begin and want to know what your starting point is in the a.m.. What I find more important is testing right before a meal and 2 hours after first bite. If your levels go up more than 2.0 mmol/l, then there were more carbs (which turn into glucose once ingested) than you could process back out. By eating to my meter I've put my T2 into remission. i'm medication and complication-free. And I rather enjoy that. I never would've managed that without a meter to tell me where my mistakes were, and what was absolutely perfect for me. So it is something to consider.Hi, I take 500mg metformin once daily and have been for 7 years, but not once has the doctor told me to check sugar levels or given me a machine to do so. Do you think I should ask x
NICE guidance is that meters and test strips should be prescribed to any Type 2 who is on medication that can cause hypos - insulin, sulfonylureas ( like Gliclazide ) and one of the newer class of meds ( meglitinides?)Doctors don't usually offer meters to patients who aren't on insulin, as the NHS won't pay for them. )
NICE guidance is that meters and test strips should be prescribed to any Type 2 who is on medication that can cause hypos - insulin, sulfonylureas ( like Gliclazide ) and one of the newer class of meds ( meglitinides?)
Doctors don't usually offer meters to patients who aren't on insulin, as the NHS won't pay for them. Most T2's here self-fund. It is invaluable in knowing where you're at, how you're doing, and most importantly, what certain foods do, so you know what is going to spike you and what's a better choice to eat. If you do go shopping for a meter, testing works like this: Some people like to test their fasting bloodsugars in the morning. I don't usually, because my dawn phenomenon is usually present, and I already know that. Old news. But that's a choice you can make, especially when you begin and want to know what your starting point is in the a.m.. What I find more important is testing right before a meal and 2 hours after first bite. If your levels go up more than 2.0 mmol/l, then there were more carbs (which turn into glucose once ingested) than you could process back out. By eating to my meter I've put my T2 into remission. i'm medication and complication-free. And I rather enjoy that. I never would've managed that without a meter to tell me where my mistakes were, and what was absolutely perfect for me. So it is something to consider.
Good luck!
Jo
PS: I'm stealing a bit @Bluetit1802 wrote, because it is an excellent piece of information. The meters aren't expensive, but the strips can be. So these are affordable to use:
The most popular meters for self funding T2's are the Codefree and the Tee2 because the strips are much cheaper than other meters, and you need a lot of strips. You can't buy them in pharmacies.
Try here for the Codefree meter
http://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/blood-glucose-monitor/
and here for the extra strips
http://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/sd-codefree-test-strips-to-be-used-only-with-the-sd-monitor/
There are discount codes if you buy in bulk. (applied at the check out stage)
5 packs 264086
10 packs 975833
The Tee2 is here and the meter is free.
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product-category/shop/tee2/
Don’t forget to check the box that you have diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for either meter)
Oh, I didn't know that! Thanks!Just to clarify the Tee 2 from Spirit Health is no longer free, it’s £9.99 so cheaper than the Code Free from Home Health but the strips work out more expensive.
Then again some of us who started from ourageously high BG (28/29 in my case), combine low carb diet with v low dose of gliclazide ( see signature) as diet alone and diet with Metformin do not control BGs and have managed to return hba1c’s in the pre / non diabetic range for over 20 years.My GP stopped prescribing test strips way before I stopped taking Gliclazide. So much for NICE guidelines. There again, NICE guidelines would have most of the country taking statins, and from a younger and younger age.
My personal opinion is that if you are on any medication at all for diabetes, then you obviously have issues with your blood glucose levels and therefore should be making some effort to control it and monitor it.
Another personal opinion is that some people can tolerate more carbs than others and that those who have a diagnosis of being type II are among those who couldn't tolerate as much as the NHS guidelines (Eatwell Plate). A lot of type II diabetics are eating too many carbs, some of my friends included, but seem be more than happy to just take the tablets. Sadly I have watched some of them become more and more unwell, gaining weight, having higher blood pressure, so more medication. I strongly believe that cutting carbs is the way forward. Sorry, I'll now vacate my soap box.
Then again some of us who started from ourageously high BG (28/29 in my case), combine low carb diet with v low dose of gliclazide ( see signature) as diet alone and diet with Metformin do not control BGs.By doing that I for one have managed to return hba1c’s in the pre / non diabetic range for over 20 years.
If you read NICE guidance then you will see what it says - if your GP ( or more probably his / her practice manager) chooses to ignore it, then that is a different matter.
Each to their own soapbox.
Then again some of us who started from ourageously high BG (28/29 in my case), combine low carb diet with v low dose of gliclazide ( see signature) as diet alone and diet with Metformin do not control BGs and have managed to return hba1c’s in the pre / non diabetic range for over 20 years.
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?