On Mon, 01 Feb 2021 14:41:34 +0000, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Mon, 01 Feb 2021 13:46:09 +0000, Caecilius
wrote:

I want to monitor my blood glucose as I have a family history of
diabetes and have been diagnosed as early stage prediabetic. My GP
says I don't need to do this and should monitor once per year with a
blood test. I'd rather monitor it myself as well, so I think this
counts as DIY.

I'm confused by the large number of meters & test strips available,
and most articles I read are either marketing puff or clickbait that
ends up talking about what meters do and why its useful, which I know
already.

Just wondering if anyone on the forum has any opinions on a meter
that:

a) Is simple & inexpensive (I don't need bluetooth, app integration
etc)
b) Is reasonably accurate (I'd hope they all need to meet an accuracy
standard anyway)
c) Has test strips that are reasonably cheap and easily available.

I'll only be measuring a couple of times a day at home, so no need for
"lifestyle" stuff.

Over the years I have acquired two meters - Accu-Check Aviva and
Agamatrix Jazz. Both are OK, although on the odd occasion I've tested
the same drop of blood with both, they seldom give exactly the same
reading. But there's no need to be too fussy. As long as they agree to
within a few tenths of a unit they'll be OK. They're basic meters,
possibly with a few extra facilities built in, but I don't use those.

But don't try to get your blood glucose down all at once. I haven't
monitored mine for a year or two now, having established a diet and
exercise regime that works for me (and don't forget the exercise; it's
very important!), although I still have annual HbA1c test.

In the early days, when, like you I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic
(they called it glucose resistant then), I concentrated on one meal at
a time, testing two hours after the end of the meal (people get very
worked up as to whether it should be two hours from the time you start
the meal or two hours after you finish. Such detail really doesn't
matter, as long as you're controlling your blood sugar). I aimed to
keep my 2-hour reading below about 6.5-7.0 mmol/litre.

So I sorted out my breakfast first - cereal with sugar followed by
toast and marmalade had to be replaced by fruit with unsweetened
natural yoghurt and sucralose sweetener, and rye bread with cottage
cheese (first thing in the morning is often when blood glucose tends
to be high so you need to watch the carbohydrates at breakfast).

Once I'd established a satisfactory breakfast routine I moved onto
lunch, my main meal of the day. Again, no or very much reduced
carbohydrates - no spuds, no rice, no pasta, and a glass of wine
actually helped, followed by a brisk 45-60 minute walk, then testing
two hours after the meal end.

Once that had been sorted I moved on to sort out my tea/supper, which
required a similar low-carb regime.

Eventually I just tested two days a week, fasting, after lunch and
after tea/supper.

I kept record on a spreadsheet and graphed the results to check on
long-term trends.

But then the NHS decided that because my HbA1c tests were always good,
I was obviously not in need of test strips any more and they stopped
them. So I stopped testing, but it hasn't made too much difference as
the diet and exercise regime I'd established kept me on track.

I was first diagnosed pre-diabetic in 2000, and I'm still pre-diabetic
rather to the surprise of my diabetic support team who initially said
I'd have full-blown T2 diabetes in a few years, thanks to sorting out
my diet in the early stages and sticking to it.

Thanks, that's reasuring. My fasting glucose is only slightly above
the normal range, but I want to keep on top of it to avoid further
problems later in life given my family history.

Ironically my main symptom at the moment is that I'm losing weight no
matter what I eat, which kind of goes against the common perception of
diabetes.

My plan is much like yours - to adjust my diet to keep my glucose
levels from peaking plus regular HbA1c tests from the GP.