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The Proper Way To Check Blood Sugar Levels

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For those with diabetes, checking blood sugar levels is a critical part of their daily health routine. Blood must be tested regularly to ensure that glucose, also known as blood sugar, is not being overproduced. When problems are detected, they must be addressed quickly and effectively. Ignoring high blood sugar can lead to dangerous side effects, including heart disease, kidney disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and retinopathy.

Fortunately, there are a variety of tools available to facilitate the testing of blood sugar levels. Unfortunately, however, it is easy to use those tools incorrectly, which can lead to improper readings and erroneous test results.

“There are a number of factors that can cause a blood sugar reading to be inaccurate,” explains Dr. Ahmet Ergin, a board-certified endocrinologist who specializes in helping patients to manage and control their diabetes. “When patients do not understand the proper way to prepare for a test, carry it out, or report the findings, the results can be very damaging to their health.”

Dr. Ergin provides educational resources on diabetes control to hundreds of thousands of people through his Youtube channel, SugarMD. His videos range from explaining the science behind diabetes to the types of foods that diabetics should avoid. More than 369,000 people subscribe to his channel.

Good testing starts with good strips

Test strips play a critical role in the glucose testing process. A drop of the patient’s blood is placed on a strip, which is then read by a meter to determine blood sugar levels. As simple as it sounds, there are still a number of factors that can negatively affect the strip and cause it to malfunction.

“Proper storage of strips is important,” says Dr. Ergin. “They should be kept in a sealed container and not exposed to high levels of heat or humidity. In addition, patients should ensure that the strips they are using are the right match for their meter.”

According to Dr. Ergin, using expired strips can also cause misreadings, so the packaging that contains the strips should be examined to determine the strips’ expiration date. The US Food and Drug Administration warns against using expired strips as well as pre-owned strips, for which expiration dates may be difficult to determine.

Use a control solution to test equipment

The accuracy of testing strips and glucose meters can be assessed by using a control solution. The solution, which is applied to a strip and tested with the meter, is formulated to provide a specific reading. If the specified reading is not produced, it is a sign that either the meter or the strips are malfunctioning.

It is recommended that control solutions be used to test equipment when opening a new package of strips, when initial readings of blood sugar levels seem unusually high or low, and when there is a reason to suspect that the meter has been damaged in some way. To ensure accuracy, patients should only use the control solution that is recommended for the particular strip or meter being tested.

Make sure that hands are clean

The blood that is used for blood sugar testing is most often drawn from the finger. Consequently, it is important that the hands are properly prepared before the finger is lanced and the sample collected. Washing hands with soap and warm water is a good preliminary measure, though cleaning them with an alcohol wipe is even better. An inaccurate reading — not to mention an infection — can result from lancing skin that has not been properly cleaned.

“To ensure the most accurate reading, an alcohol wipe should be used before lancing,” says Dr. Ergin. “There are a variety of substances that could be on your skin that could affect the blood sugar reading, including lotions, oils, or food. Obviously, having sugar on your hand, which can be picked up from any number of foods, has the potential to skew the meter’s results.”

Record and report blood sugar readings

Once an accurate reading is obtained, patients should have a system for recording it. In some cases, the meter will transfer testing data directly to an app or to their doctor’s office. If one is not using a meter that provides that service, Dr. Ergin asserts they should make sure they record their readings manually so that they can be shared with their doctor.

“It is important that you track your blood sugar levels, but it is even more important that your doctor has the information,” explains Dr. Ergin. “Working together with your doctor is the best way to keep diabetes under control and to achieve the highest level of well-being.”

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