Blood sugar testing kit

[Jace007]

Does anyone here use a Blood sugar testing kit? Any recommendations for a £22 budget.
Do these kits work well & show you how much your blood sugar is, that you can take steps to control it?

What simple steps would you recommend to reduce your sugar intake when you have a sweet tooth ?

[g8ina]

Ill ask my missus when she wakes up which model she uses (Type II).

Stevia is pretty good as a sugar alternative, there are plenty of sugar free sweet things out there now that even *I* would eat And Im a fussy beggar

[kalniel]

Just ask your GP and get it for free? They'll also tell you exactly what to do to control it. The NHS have a LOT of experience in diabetes.

[g8ina]

Sally uses a FineTest Lite. £12 off ebay. Strips and Lancets extra. But as stated above if diabetic, GP surgery will issue one free and lancets and strips will be on repeat prescription.

[Jace007]

Thanks for that g8ina idk, i might go and get a checkup but these days its difficult to get a Dr app. I'm showing more signs of diabetes or is that just old age :S
asked lloyds pharmacy but they are all out of stock for past 2 weeks. giving up or reducing sugar is such a mental challenge, were so use to it, its keeps you happy and frankly things taste better with it.
but i think i really need to set myself a goal of reducing my sugar intake and fingers crossed it should help.

[Spreadie]

FYI, sugar isn't the issue, well not the main issue - Only about half of sugar turns into glucose, and glucose is the problem.

The biggies are the large carb dumps: bread, pasta, white rice, potatoes etc. A couple of slices of white toast usually sends my glucose level through the roof, and makes me feel sick. Seeded wholemeal bread is a better choice - the fat from the seeds slows down the conversion and you don't get a glucose spike.

Basmati rice is better than long grain, wholemeal pasta is a better choice than regular pasta.

These are still big carb dumps, full of glucose, but they convert to glucose over a longer period making it easier for your body to deal with.

There are loads of information sources out there - just make sure you read current stuff because, up until about ten years ago, GPs were actually recommending low sugar high carb diets for type II diabetics. It was really poorly understood.

It's not just the amount of carbs, its how fast it burns - a banana is high is in carbs and my own GP tried to tell me I couldn't have one for breakfast, but your body will process it over a few hours; whereas white toast will burn through in less than 30 minutes, giving you a sharp glucose spike.

[Saracen999]

I'd suggest pushing quite hard for a GP appointment, though it could be a telephone appointment. That, they should have no problem doing. I'd guess their first reaction will be to order blood tests. Diabetes isn't the only possibility. And that might mean an outpatient hospital visit. It does round here because the visiting phlebotomists aren't doing their usual visits to GP practices.

Everything Spreadie said made sense to me. There are also "low sugar" replacements for some sugar-intensive products, like jam or marmalade. Some, to my tastes anyway, are foul concoctions and I'd rather go without, but a diabetic friend of mine hunted down some of both that actually tasted pretty decent (and I'm rather fussy about both). It might be worth a look.

[Spreadie]

As far as glucose monitors go - I'd recommend avoiding the Accu-Check ones that use a multi-test cartridge. They're great to begin with but, as you get used to what foods are better for you and you use the monitor less and less, you soon discover the test cartridge has a fixed lifespan once you start using it. My last two 50-shot cartridges were wasted after a handful of tests, because I only test occasionally.