Hello

[Ed T]

Hi,
I am new to the forum and would like to introduce myself.

My name is Ed and I live in Washington State. I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in late May. I found out after being denied life insurance. I had not had any symptoms prior to that.

I have been asked to take Metformin 500 BID and Lisinopril 10 QD.

When I attended the education class, they said that the most important part of care was exercising, so I walk the dog each night now. Blood sugar is controlled. Diet is tolerable. Dog is happy.

I do have one question. My glucometer can vary widely. How reliable are they supposed to be. For the statisticians in the group how reliable and valid are they? I have had one read 120, 101, and 96 in consecutive pokes.

I tend to be between 95 and 105 most of the time. Occasionally I am in the 110-120 range.

[xMenace]

Welcome again.

I know there's significant variability. Try asking Dr. Google.
ScienceDirect - Clinica Chimica Acta : Evaluation of a glucose meter against analytical quality specifications for hospital use (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T57-4BYR955-1&_user=10&_coverDate=05%2F31%2F2004&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=320041cfcd1be3b36454eefd730117af)

[EasyType2]

Welcome Ed.

I don't think you need to worry about that variation. Your range is very good, so just keep it there. Congrats!!!

[shockme]

hi ed and welcome to df! take care,trish

[gettingby]

Hi Ed and Welcome. This is a great place for help and advice. Stick around. :)

[WordJames]

I do have one question. My glucometer can vary widely. How reliable are they supposed to be. For the statisticians in the group how reliable and valid are they? I have had one read 120, 101, and 96 in consecutive pokes.

Yes, meters do vary wildly in your readings. I've seen high variations in readings from a single drop of blood. Some brands may read higher than others, but not that much more. Meters haven't been around much more than a couple of decades and I think most of them still use the same kind of material derived from horseradish as when testing was done optically (place a large drop of blood on a test strip, count off twenty seconds, wipe the blood off the strip and compare its color against a printed chart as quickly as you can because the strip continues changing color).

Other factors can make your readings unreliable, such as contamination on your hands, especially sugar contamination from foods. That's why they tell us to wash our hands before testing. Try it -- it's simple enough -- and you may be surprised how consistent your readings become.

[Ed T]

Thank you for the welcome and the replies.
I think that I am most surprised by how many people there are with the type 2 diabetes. Recently, a friend's mother was diagnosed. She and I are going to meet and share information. When I was diagnosed, a friend at work was about 6 months ahead of me and shared a lot of experience. It helped me to avoid a lot of frustration and confusion. Early on, it seemed like a lot of information was contradictory. Also, I had a hard time discerning goals. Glucose control versus weight loss, versus blood pressure control, etc.

[mortis505]

Hi Ed T, and welcome to DF!!! Its nice to see another washingtonian.

[kgm0612]

HI ED T & Welcome. We're glad you found us and hope you post often.

Karen

[princesslinda]

Welcome Ed! Glad you found the forum. It certainly makes dealing with the Big-D much easier, as there are so many here to commiserate, encourage, support and even give the necessary "kick in the pants" when needed.

[liz]

hi Ed

glad to meet you, so good to hear the you have such good controll already (wish i could say the same), keep up the good work :)

[owlyn]

Hi, Ed,

A 20% variation is normal for all meters, so 100=80=120. Your range is expected.

[lilituc]

Hi Ed!

Congrats on being in WA. Luckily we have a state law here that certain diabetes supplies have to be covered by insurance.

[amyjo29]

This is what I have been told...you prick once and leave it alone. The sugars in your body travel to different places, of course, so you can have once reading on one finger and another on a different finger. It just varies from place to place in your body. This is why they say to finger test and not arm test because the finger test is much more accurate.