Slightly OT: recs for blood glucose testing device

[klv329]

+1 on walmart's Relion A1C....picked up one for $18 a couple weeks ago. For spot checks I also use walmart Relion Confirm test strips.

[Janknitz]

The carbohydrate guidelines from the American Diabetes Association are ridiculous!
My only guess--they are designed for Type 1 only, not Type 2 with insulin resistance.
---Or they are calculated to sell a heckuva lot of insulin.

No question that the American Diabetes Association are calculated to sell a heckuva lot of insulin.
Their corporate sponsors:
http://www.diabetes.org/about-us/corpor ... rters.html
http://www.stopdiabetes.com/

They promote a system of "Eat up and Shoot up" to make sure you keep their corporate sponsors in business.

Take a look at the "diabetes" magazines in your doctor's office--guaranteed to keep you sick. One slick recipe after another for carbful foods, interspersed with ads for diabetes drugs and supplies. It's horrible.

And no, Type I's should not be eating all those carbs either. The fewer carbs they ingest, the less insulin they must inject, and the fewer diabetic complications they develop.

[palerider]

The carbohydrate guidelines from the American Diabetes Association are ridiculous!
My only guess--they are designed for Type 1 only, not Type 2 with insulin resistance.
---Or they are calculated to sell a heckuva lot of insulin.

No question that the American Diabetes Association are calculated to sell a heckuva lot of insulin.
Their corporate sponsors:
http://www.diabetes.org/about-us/corpor ... rters.html
http://www.stopdiabetes.com/

They promote a system of "Eat up and Shoot up" to make sure you keep their corporate sponsors in business.

Take a look at the "diabetes" magazines in your doctor's office--guaranteed to keep you sick. One slick recipe after another for carbful foods, interspersed with ads for diabetes drugs and supplies. It's horrible.

hey, the sooner you die, the sooner you quit costing insurance companies money.

[Janknitz]

This is geared toward Type I's but addresses some of the discussion above:

https://player.fm/series/the-livin-la-v ... w-carb-usa

[Janknitz]

quote]
hey, the sooner you die, the sooner you quit costing insurance companies money. [/quote]

The sad part is that this is costing so much! Insulin resistance (the underlying issue in diabetes type II) is the cause of so many expensive conditions in the "diabetes spectrum" including dementia. Much of cancer is probably related as well, and autoimmune diseases. The insurance companies would probably save 95% of the cost of healthcare with simple lifestyle changes to reduce hyperinsulemia/diabetes.

[palerider]

hey, the sooner you die, the sooner you quit costing insurance companies money.

The sad part is that this is costing so much! Insulin resistance (the underlying issue in diabetes type II) is the cause of so many expensive conditions in the "diabetes spectrum" including dementia. Much of cancer is probably related as well, and autoimmune diseases. The insurance companies would probably save 95% of the cost of healthcare with simple lifestyle changes to reduce hyperinsulemia/diabetes.

yeah, but that would be expecting healthcare here to make some kind of sense

[Pinhead]

Haven't posted in forever, all is well with me and my machine, except my AC1 has gone up a bit and my doc has put me on Metformin (500 mgs). She didn't say anything about getting a glucose monitor but after three weeks on the drug I'm often dizzy or lightheaded when I stand up after sitting for an extended period (like at work or after an hour or so behind the wheel), and I'm not comfortable waiting til my next visit with her in two months to see what my number is.

Can you recommend an inexpensive/easy to use blood glucose monitor that I can buy myself?

Thanks

Ellen

+1 on Relion products they are inexpensive and work well. Back to the Metformin, your post does not say if you are regular metformin or Extended release, My DR. started me on extended release a number of years ago, when I moved the new Dr. gave me a script for regular Metformin and it gave me the same feelings you are getting plus other uncomfortable symptom's related to the restroom. You could try switching. Nothing controls your A1C better then exercise, at least for me. Get out and ride a bike or walk at least 4 x's a week, the longer the better. Good Luck

[Janknitz]

This https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/ ... onomy-t2d/ sums it up nicely. Add that info to recommendations that diabetics should eat more carbs than the RDA for "normal" glucose tolerant folks, and you've got an explosion of diabetes, obesity, kidney failure (dialysis is yet another big money maker), limb amputations, blindness, and cardiovascular disease, and dementia. Big business. Big profits.

[Woody]

Someone mentioned the Freestyle Precesion Neo. My experience with this cheep meter has been
horible. I went through a couple of boxes of strips and about every third one wouldn't read at all.
Freestyle replaced the meter and it also only reads about 2 out of 3 strips. Oh they just about give
the strips away on Ebay but they just arn't worth the trouble. And I have tried strips form 3 or 4
different sources.

[Guest]

I've not tried the Neo but I've had great luck with the Freestyle Lite. In fact, I prefer the Freestyle Lite over other meters I've used for several reason but the biggest is it uses the smallest blood sample size. .3 microliters which is half what the other meters need. With the others I've had times when it won't read cuz I'm not bleeding enuff and I end up wasting test strips.

The biggest problem is Medicare Mail Order suppliers like Binson and the others simply refuse to order what you want very much like the cpap providers, so I refuse to give them my business. You try to file a complaint with Medicare and you have to talk with people who simply are not interest in doing anything today or tomorrow for that matter.

I know the selected providers like to push the Prodigy and say its a talking meter but I have to wonder if you can't see to read the meter just how do you see to put that drop of blood on the test strip?

[SewTired]

ellen1159, call your doctor's office and report the dizziness. S/he may want to make an adjustment now or see you earlier.

I stick with Bayer Contour but I go through a lot more strips. When you buy them 300-600 at a time, the price per strip is only a penny or two higher than the generic store brand when purchased through Amazon or Ebay. You want a meter that has reasonably priced SMALL quantities of strips because they only last so long once opened. Store brands generally will work well enough for that with the accompanying lower price. TrueMetrix is the new storebrand meter (MOST of the pharmacies, Target and Walmart all have this brand of meter under their name). A fair number of people have reported inaccuracies and multiple error codes, but I don't know if it is the strips or the meter itself. This is sad because its prior version was popular, accurate and recommended by many doctors.

[jamor]

I am pre-diabetic and I pay for my own BG meter and strips. I have two -- Freestyle Lite (strips cost about 70 cents per on Amazon) -- it seems to be more accurate than my second, but not by much -- especially at lower sugar levels. The second one I use is Relion Prime from Walmart. The strips are about 18 cents per strip. I use that all the time and if I see something that looks wierd (a reading that seems higher than it should be for example), I do a test with my more expensive but slightly more accurate Freestyle Lite. For example - I have been eating very low carb in an attempt to lose some weight. My morning BG is generally around 110 -- it was 130 a few days back. I did a second test with the Relion and it was 124. So I got out my Freestyle and it read what I would expect -- around 110.

[chunkyfrog]

If you add the cost of the insulin needed to balance every carbohydrate food you eat,
you will find that you cannot AFFORD to eat starchy or sugary foods.
If you try "activity", you will find the amount of exercise needed to do the same will CRIPPLE you!

[ChrisD]

Can you recommend an inexpensive/easy to use blood glucose monitor that I can buy myself?

Ellen,

You might want to check here first to get an idea as to what is out there:
http://www.toptenreviews.com/health/sen ... ucometers/
http://main.diabetes.org/dforg/pdfs/201 ... meters.pdf
http://www.consumersearch.com/blood-glucose-meters

I use the Bayer Contour Next USB Meter ($55 at Walmart). I really like the USB interface becuase I don't have to mess with plugging in a USB cord. I think the USB meter I have is being phased out and the replacement has a BlueTooth interface.
https://www.contournext.com/our-product ... usb-meter/
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Bayer-Contou ... m/22984216
https://www.amazon.com/Bayer-Contour-Gl ... B00C3MFG02

Good Luck,
Chris