BG Testing??

[Wolff]

Hey,

Just wanted to find out, If your BG levels are pretty much under control, How often should you be testing, I mean the test strips are pretty darn expensive and at my current rate I'm using about R640.00 (USD97.00 - GBP47.00) worth a month and it's breaking the bank a bit.

Thanks

[shabbie6247]

hi wolff,
whilst taking insulin we are recommended to test minimum 4 times aday. thats before each meal and before bed.
testing any less than that you would not be able to truly maintain good control imho

[Scratch]

hi wolff,
whilst taking insulin we are recommended to test minimum 4 times aday. thats before each meal and before bed.
testing any less than that you would not be able to truly maintain good control imho
I think 4x is a bare minimum. To get really good control, you need testing before and after every meal, upon waking up and before bed. Assuming 3 meals, that's 8x. I'd even consider that to be minimal overall.

Overall, it just really stinks the way they gouge people on the test strips. The test strips are such a profitable item they give away the glucometers for free.

Unfortunately, the test strips are a necessary item if one wants to use the basal/bolus method to maintain nearly normal glycemic control.

[peej07]

I'm on a pump and I average about 6 a day.

[tanyatype1]

Hi Wolff - if the cost was restricting me from testing then I would at the very least, test first thing in the morning and at bed at night. I'm also curious what your level of control is?(A1C) I'd also start eating low-carb to ensure that my bg's weren't going high. On the flip side though, nothing is more important than your health. I'd try to cut corners somewhere else. If you were buying test strips for your child, you wouldn't skimp, so you shouldn't do it to yourself either! You're worth it.

[shades9323]

I think 4x is a bare minimum. To get really good control, you need testing before and after every meal, upon waking up and before bed. Assuming 3 meals, that's 8x. I'd even consider that to be minimal overall.

Overall, it just really stinks the way they gouge people on the test strips. The test strips are such a profitable item they give away the glucometers for free.

Unfortunately, the test strips are a necessary item if one wants to use the basal/bolus method to maintain nearly normal glycemic control.


Ha, I cut that down to 7 by eating breakfast just after I get up! That would save about $350 per year(if I paid retail)!!!:eek:

[dazzy34]

Do you not have medical aid wolff? I am with Discovery and get 150 strips free as part of my chronic illness benefit, my medical aid costs R870 a month, for that i get hospitalisation cover, all my insulin, strips, lancetts and needles and i got two free gluco meters. How are you getting your insulin? do you pay?

If you do then get a medical aid NOW, you might not be able to claim for six months but after that you can claim and it will end up saving you a fortune. there are companies that will do a cheap contract for a few hundred rands, they have to by law supply you as diabetes is on the list of 12 chronic illnesses that the government say that all schemes must pay out on.

[Cyborg]

Personally, my bg are well under control partly because I tend to test about every 2 hours...

[Gary_W]

If you are doing a basal / bolus scheme with carb counting, you really need to know what your BG is before a meal. In this way, you have a meaningful way of deciding how much insulin to give. This is why testing before a meal is important. Carb counting will get you back to your pre-meal level with the correct dose, but if your pre-meal level is too high you'll give extra.

The reason a lot of people then test 2-3 hours after a meal is because you can get the carb counting wrong. At this point, you may be too high or too low. You can then give a snack or extra insulin. Good control and hypo avoidance at hour 3-4 when most short acting insulins are still active (despite what the makers may say)

Gary

[Grim]

Glad to see other South Africans on the diabetes forums!

I sympathise over the cost of test strips. If you have medical insurance the test strips will be covered under your chronic meds.

Some medical aids can be sticky about the number of strips per month. I got my Endo to motivate for extra test strips to cover 4 - 6 tests per day.