My New Blood Glucose Monitor

x-no-archive: yes

Aaron Baugher said:

Ok, so I picked up a blood glucose monitor this weekend. Ouch! Heh,
it's not so bad, but I sure feel sorry for the Type I kids out there
who've had to put up with this all their lives.

Quite a scam, too, with these stupid little strips of paper being two
for a dollar, and those were the cheapest ones. I bet they make a
thousand of them for that price. That's what you get when too many
people don't pay for something out-of-pocket. And why on earth are
the strips sold in packs of 50 or 100, while the lancets are sold in
packs of 200, when the strips can only be used once, but you might use
a needle a couple times (like if a test errors and you do another
right away)? God, I hate the health care industry.

You should have bought a Walmart Relion, it has the cheapest strips.

Most of use use the same lancets for months or more without changing them.

Susan

Aaron Baugher wrote:
:: Ok, so I picked up a blood glucose monitor this weekend. Ouch! Heh,
:: it's not so bad, but I sure feel sorry for the Type I kids out there
:: who've had to put up with this all their lives.
::
:: Quite a scam, too, with these stupid little strips of paper being two
:: for a dollar, and those were the cheapest ones. I bet they make a
:: thousand of them for that price. That's what you get when too many
:: people don't pay for something out-of-pocket. And why on earth are
:: the strips sold in packs of 50 or 100, while the lancets are sold in
:: packs of 200, when the strips can only be used once, but you might
:: use a needle a couple times (like if a test errors and you do another
:: right away)? God, I hate the health care industry.
::
:: Anyway, I went straight home and did a test, after having been
:: strictly low-carb (practically a meat fast) for a week, and got a 60.

Did you check your meter using the control solution?

I use my lancets over and over until I get an urge to change one.

The RiteAid strips are the same price as the Relion. (For those who don't
like to shop at Walmart.)

Susan wrote:
| x-no-archive: yes
|
| You should have bought a Walmart Relion, it has the cheapest strips.
|
| Most of use use the same lancets for months or more without changing
| them.
|
| Susan

Susan made the main point I was going to make... that you can use the
lancets again and again. I frankly don't change mine except when I'm
testing someone else's bg, put a fresh one in for their test, then
after that a fresh one for me. The suckers last nearly forever.

As for the one surprisingly low reading, read the manual and make sure
the meter is calibrated.

Also... well, I wouldn't put too much stock in ANY one reading.

And yeah, the strips are expensive, but you don't have to test all the
time. You test fasting, 1 and 2 hours after meals, and before bed for
a week or two to get a "baseline" of what is normal for you on your
standard diet. You don't get a feel for what is really going on
unless you test a lot for a while.

Thereafter, you only need to test when you make changes, to see how
the changes affect you. Like... I changed my exercise time again and
again to try to lower my fasting bg. I think you need to test a
change for about a week to see how it really helps.

Or you test new and unfamiliar foods, especially ones that are
"controversial" like Dreamfield's pasta or various sugar alcohols and
such... a lot of these things, different people have different
reactions.

When I make a significant change in my life, I test as if it's all new
again. Like... when I started driving a truck, I tested for 2-3 weeks
to see how the funky schedule and dietary changes were working for me.

I also do a week of testing every 4 months or so... just to keep track
of how my diabetes is doing over all. I am currently without medical
insurance again and the strips are way cheaper than an endo
appointment. And frankly, a week of test results gives you more
information than an HB1a or even a GTT.

Other stuff that I have found: if I have a high-carb meal, my bg comes
back down rapidly, usually by the next meal. If I eat high-carb for
several days, like when I'm visiting the in-laws, my bg remains
elevated for several days, even up to a week.

No one wants to admit to ever screwing up, but I've been diabetic for
18 years and had many opportunities to screw up. 😉 If I completely
blow it and am just off for months, it can take weeks and weeks to get
my bg back under control.

Also... being sick will raise your bg.

I consider my goal to be to remain under 140 at all times and my
fasting is the hardest to keep under that. This is do-able for me on
a reasonable diet (50g carb, 100 g protein, 90g fat) with normal
exercise. Testing has shown me that reducing carb below this level
doesn't buy me lower numbers, so I don't bother. But I think a lower
goal would be preferable if it's do-able for you.

Also, though you haven't been diagnosed, this page has good info if
you haven't seen it yet:
http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/NewlyDiagnosed.htm

[email hidden] wrote:
:: Susan made the main point I was going to make... that you can use the
:: lancets again and again. I frankly don't change mine except when I'm
:: testing someone else's bg, put a fresh one in for their test, then
:: after that a fresh one for me. The suckers last nearly forever.
::
:: As for the one surprisingly low reading, read the manual and make
:: sure the meter is calibrated.

You always run a control test on a new meter. Other than that, how does one
calibrate a meter?
If a meter flunks the control test, barring issues with the solution,
strips, and procedure, you need a new meter.

::
:: Also... well, I wouldn't put too much stock in ANY one reading.
::

Right...but if the meter consistently flunks the control test with good
strips, solution, and procedure, it needs to be exchanged for a new one.

On Wed, 16 May 2007 09:41:29 -0400, Aaron Baugher
<[email hidden]> wrote:

[cut]

Quoted message said:

Anyway, I went straight home and did a test, after having been
strictly low-carb (practically a meat fast) for a week, and got a 60.
Then, for the sake of science, I ate a pound of potato sticks for
supper.

Did you really eat a pound of potato sticks? Even for the sake of
science, I don't think that's a good thing to do.

--
Bob in CT

lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty stuff. There
is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood, and are deposited from
the air. -Airborne fungus too.

Re-using lancets seems like a serious problem to me.

"Roger Zoul" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Aaron Baugher wrote:
:: Ok, so I picked up a blood glucose monitor this weekend. Ouch! Heh,
:: it's not so bad, but I sure feel sorry for the Type I kids out there
:: who've had to put up with this all their lives.
::
:: Quite a scam, too, with these stupid little strips of paper being two
:: for a dollar, and those were the cheapest ones. I bet they make a
:: thousand of them for that price. That's what you get when too many
:: people don't pay for something out-of-pocket. And why on earth are
:: the strips sold in packs of 50 or 100, while the lancets are sold in
:: packs of 200, when the strips can only be used once, but you might
:: use a needle a couple times (like if a test errors and you do another
:: right away)? God, I hate the health care industry.
::
:: Anyway, I went straight home and did a test, after having been
:: strictly low-carb (practically a meat fast) for a week, and got a 60.

Did you check your meter using the control solution?

I use my lancets over and over until I get an urge to change one.

x-no-archive: yes

re-using lancets? Susan, of all people- You are smarter than that.

"Susan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

x-no-archive: yes

Aaron Baugher said:

Ok, so I picked up a blood glucose monitor this weekend. Ouch! Heh,
it's not so bad, but I sure feel sorry for the Type I kids out there
who've had to put up with this all their lives.

Quite a scam, too, with these stupid little strips of paper being two
for a dollar, and those were the cheapest ones. I bet they make a
thousand of them for that price. That's what you get when too many
people don't pay for something out-of-pocket. And why on earth are
the strips sold in packs of 50 or 100, while the lancets are sold in
packs of 200, when the strips can only be used once, but you might use
a needle a couple times (like if a test errors and you do another
right away)? God, I hate the health care industry.

You should have bought a Walmart Relion, it has the cheapest strips.

Most of use use the same lancets for months or more without changing them.

Susan

Cubit wrote:
:: lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty stuff.
:: There is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood, and are
:: deposited from the air. -Airborne fungus too.
::
:: Re-using lancets seems like a serious problem to me.

Really? Why don't you go ask the other zillion of diabetics who do it
regularly. I've been doing it for a year or so with nary a problem, so you
label it a "serious" one.

Of course, I would not use my lancet on someone else or use someone else's
on me.

::
:: "Roger Zoul" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
:: news:[email hidden]...
::: I use my lancets over and over until I get an urge to change one.

I change mine about every six or seven months, unless, as you say, I'm
testing someone else.

Cheri

Roger Zoul wrote in message
<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Really? Why don't you go ask the other zillion of diabetics who do

it

Quoted message said:

regularly. I've been doing it for a year or so with nary a problem,

so you

Quoted message said:

label it a "serious" one.

Of course, I would not use my lancet on someone else or use someone

else's

Quoted message said:

on me.

x-no-archive: yes

Cubit said:

lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty stuff. There
is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood, and are deposited from
the air. -Airborne fungus too.

I don't know anyone who changes a lancet more than a few times per year,
so far no infections.

I was shocked to learn that most type 1s don't wipe their insulin vials
with alcohol before sticking an unsterile, used syringe into them, either.

So far, no casualties.

Susan

x-no-archive: yes

Cubit said:

x-no-archive: yes

re-using lancets? Susan, of all people- You are smarter than that.

So far, so good.

Susan

x-no-archive: yes

"Dead men tell no tales."

Arrgh

"Susan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

x-no-archive: yes

Cubit said:

lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty stuff.
There is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood, and are
deposited from the air. -Airborne fungus too.

I don't know anyone who changes a lancet more than a few times per year,
so far no infections.

I was shocked to learn that most type 1s don't wipe their insulin vials
with alcohol before sticking an unsterile, used syringe into them, either.

So far, no casualties.

Susan

And we all die one day...

Cubit wrote:
:: x-no-archive: yes
::
:: "Dead men tell no tales."
::
:: Arrgh
::
:: "Susan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
:: news:[email hidden]...
::: x-no-archive: yes
:::
::: Cubit wrote:
:::: lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty
:::: stuff. There is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood,
:::: and are deposited from the air. -Airborne fungus too.
:::
::: I don't know anyone who changes a lancet more than a few times per
::: year, so far no infections.
:::
::: I was shocked to learn that most type 1s don't wipe their insulin
::: vials with alcohol before sticking an unsterile, used syringe into
::: them, either.
:::
::: So far, no casualties.
:::
::: Susan

On Wed, 16 May 2007 18:55:22 -0400, Susan <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

x-no-archive: yes

Cubit said:

x-no-archive: yes

re-using lancets? Susan, of all people- You are smarter than that.

So far, so good.

Susan

Thanks for reminding me -- I change mine twice a year whether I need
to or not. ;-)

Cubit said:

lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty stuff. There
is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood, and are deposited from
the air. -Airborne fungus too.

Re-using lancets seems like a serious problem to me.

Well, it's not . . .

I guess I've never read your posts carefully before because I didn't
realize until this week how bad these issues are for you. This post
and the "rancid body fat" post are really enlightening. This kind of
thing must drive you nuts! I mean, you don't take it to total
extremes, do you? Like rushing to eat your dinner because of the
invisible stuff in the air that's collecting on it? I'm not making
fun of you -- I know people who can hardly eat because of this kind of
thing. It's a really horrible way to live.

I know it won't change your mind, but our bodies are a lot smarter and
stronger than they get credit for.

BlueBrooke wrote:
:: On Wed, 16 May 2007 12:48:31 -0800, "Cubit" <[email hidden]> wrote:
::
::: lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty
::: stuff. There is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood,
::: and are deposited from the air. -Airborne fungus too.
:::
::: Re-using lancets seems like a serious problem to me.
::
:: Well, it's not . . .
::
:: I guess I've never read your posts carefully before because I didn't
:: realize until this week how bad these issues are for you. This post
:: and the "rancid body fat" post are really enlightening. This kind of
:: thing must drive you nuts! I mean, you don't take it to total
:: extremes, do you? Like rushing to eat your dinner because of the
:: invisible stuff in the air that's collecting on it? I'm not making
:: fun of you -- I know people who can hardly eat because of this kind
:: of thing. It's a really horrible way to live.
::
:: I know it won't change your mind, but our bodies are a lot smarter
:: and stronger than they get credit for.

Oh, he's not that worried....he and his dog eat from the same bowl
sometimes. I think the dog learns that he'd better eat quick before its all
gone.

Cubit said:

lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty stuff. There
is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood, and are deposited from
the air. -Airborne fungus too.

Re-using lancets seems like a serious problem to me.

I don't think so. Far as I know, nearly everyone does this.
Bernstein even suggests it in his book.

I doubt there's enough blood left on the lancet for anything to grow
on.

[email hidden] wrote:
:: On May 16, 3:48 pm, "Cubit" <[email hidden]> wrote:
::: lancets? Bits of blood on the lancet are going to grow nasty
::: stuff. There is sugar in the blood, and bacteria are in the blood,
::: and are deposited from the air. -Airborne fungus too.
:::
::: Re-using lancets seems like a serious problem to me.
::
:: I don't think so. Far as I know, nearly everyone does this.
:: Bernstein even suggests it in his book.
::
:: I doubt there's enough blood left on the lancet for anything to grow
:: on.

I never did it before I read of it here. I really, really doubt it's a
serious problem. I've never seen any blood on a lancet. They are in/out so
fast that blood doesn't get a change to collect, and their retraction
through skin would likely remove it anyway.

I didn't know that Berstein suggests it, though. I'll have to go looking
for that.