Cheap glucose meter for low carb?

x-no-archive: yes

Quoted message said:

Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood
when on a low carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as
you know)?

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

Meters are usually free because they want you to buy the very expensive
strips.

That said, buy a Walmart Relion because the strips are so cheap compared
to others.

But if you have no loss of beta cells, your meter may not give you any
useful info; you'll just secrete excess insulin to keep your bg normal.

Susan

Quoted message said:

Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood
when on a low carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as
you know)?

Testing every so often isn't a bad idea.

Quoted message said:

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

Any chance you can find one to borrow and just use a
fresh lancet? If you're only testing once why buy the whole
thing.

Quoted message said:

Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood
when on a low carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as
you know)?

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

It' isn't the meter that's expensive -- a lot of companies are giving
them away now. It's the strips that you'll need a bank loan for.

Last time I checked, Wal-Mart's Relion meter is about $10.00 and the
strips are about $50.00 for 100 -- about half the price of the strips
for the other meters I have (and don't use anymore -- because of the
outrageous cost of the strips).

And no -- I don't think it's crazy.

--
BlueBrooke
254/228/135

Doug Freyburger said:

Quoted message said:

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

Any chance you can find one to borrow and just use a
fresh lancet? If you're only testing once why buy the whole
thing.

No

I don't have any friend who have one

Susan said:

But if you have no loss of beta cells, your meter may not give you any
useful info; you'll just secrete excess insulin to keep your bg normal.

Not sure I understand

Bottom line..will it give me any useful info if trying
to control carbs on diet?

Rite Aid has a meter with strips that are similarly priced.

BlueBrooke wrote:
|
|
| It' isn't the meter that's expensive -- a lot of companies are giving
| them away now. It's the strips that you'll need a bank loan for.
|
| Last time I checked, Wal-Mart's Relion meter is about $10.00 and the
| strips are about $50.00 for 100 -- about half the price of the strips
| for the other meters I have (and don't use anymore -- because of the
| outrageous cost of the strips).
|
| And no -- I don't think it's crazy.

x-no-archive: yes

Quoted message said:

Not sure I understand

Bottom line..will it give me any useful info if trying
to control carbs on diet?

Not if you have intact pancreatic function. But it may surprise you by
showing that your bg is higher one hour after eating carbs than you expect.

Susan

BlueBrooke <.@.> wrote in message ...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood
when on a low carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as
you know)?

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

It' isn't the meter that's expensive -- a lot of companies are giving
them away now. It's the strips that you'll need a bank loan for.

Last time I checked, Wal-Mart's Relion meter is about $10.00 and the
strips are about $50.00 for 100 -- about half the price of the strips
for the other meters I have (and don't use anymore -- because of the
outrageous cost of the strips).

And no -- I don't think it's crazy.

--
BlueBrooke
254/228/135

I bought a box of 100 last week. They were $42.95 in CA. Also, I don't
know about other states, but if you pay for diabetic supplies like
meters and strips at the pharmacy counter, you don't have sales tax on
the items.

Cheri

Doug Freyburger said:

Any chance you can find one to borrow and just use a
fresh lancet? If you're only testing once why buy the whole
thing.

I'm not sure how much info you can get from one test. What would you
test? Fasting? Postprandial?

Anyone who wants to test needs to read this to understand their test
results:
http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/NewlyDiagnosed.htm

--
http://www.ornery-geeks.org/consulting/

Quoted message said:

Bottom line..will it give me any useful info if trying
to control carbs on diet?

Maybe. Maybe not.

Have you been successful on low-fat or low-calorie diets in the past?
If not, and you *are* successful on low-carb, then the odds are good
you'd be getting useful information.

--
http://www.ornery-geeks.org/consulting/

Quoted message said:

Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood when on a low
carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as you know)?

No, it's not crazy at all. First of all, you can be diabetic without
knowing it, even if a doctor has said you aren't. But even if you're
not, you could have impaired insulin function which could lead to
diabetes in the future, in which case testing will help you control it
and prevent it from getting worse. Testing could also show that your
insulin function and blood sugar levels are perfect, which wouldn't be
a bad thing to learn either: you could have a party!

I personally think there are very few overweight people with perfect
insulin function, though. Not *none*, but very few.

Quoted message said:

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

As others have pointed out, the cost of the strips is the important
thing, because you only buy the meter once. Wal-Mart's Relion is
under $10, and the strips are about 50 cents each. I got the
Accu-Chek Active, which was about $30 I think, but the strips are just
as cheap as the Relion's, and I can probably get them at other places
besides Wal-Mart, which is nice because their supply of diabetes stuff
is spotty here.

In addition to the meter and strips (which must match each other),
you'll also need lancets (needles) and a lancet applicator (thing that
makes the poking as painless as possible). These two have to match
each other, but they don't have to match the meter and strips; they
can be a completely different brand if you spot a deal or a feature
you like. You just have to draw blood somehow.

One other thing you might need is calibration fluid for your meter.
This is a controlled glucose solution that you can use to make sure
your meter is accurate. The Wal-Mart here doesn't even carry that,
though, and their "pharmacists" didn't seem to know what it was.

All told, if you can get a small number of lancets and strips to start
out, you should be able to get everything for under $50, maybe quite a
bit less than that. I originally got my brand-name meter, 50 strips,
200 lancets (enough for a few years, at least), and the lancet
applicator for about $80 total.

--
Aaron -- 285/254/200 -- aaron.baugher.biz

Some meters come with a lancet device and several lancets, the one from
RiteAid does. You can order it online along with test strips, free shipping
on any order over $25, which is nice if your local shopping is subpar.
http://www.drugstore.com/products/prod.asp?pid=83649&catid=10016

Aaron Baugher wrote:
| [email hidden] writes:
|
|| Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood when on a low
|| carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as you know)?
|
| No, it's not crazy at all. First of all, you can be diabetic without
| knowing it, even if a doctor has said you aren't. But even if you're
| not, you could have impaired insulin function which could lead to
| diabetes in the future, in which case testing will help you control it
| and prevent it from getting worse. Testing could also show that your
| insulin function and blood sugar levels are perfect, which wouldn't be
| a bad thing to learn either: you could have a party!
|
| I personally think there are very few overweight people with perfect
| insulin function, though. Not *none*, but very few.
|
|| If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?
|
| As others have pointed out, the cost of the strips is the important
| thing, because you only buy the meter once. Wal-Mart's Relion is
| under $10, and the strips are about 50 cents each. I got the
| Accu-Chek Active, which was about $30 I think, but the strips are just
| as cheap as the Relion's, and I can probably get them at other places
| besides Wal-Mart, which is nice because their supply of diabetes stuff
| is spotty here.
|
| In addition to the meter and strips (which must match each other),
| you'll also need lancets (needles) and a lancet applicator (thing that
| makes the poking as painless as possible). These two have to match
| each other, but they don't have to match the meter and strips; they
| can be a completely different brand if you spot a deal or a feature
| you like. You just have to draw blood somehow.
|
| One other thing you might need is calibration fluid for your meter.
| This is a controlled glucose solution that you can use to make sure
| your meter is accurate. The Wal-Mart here doesn't even carry that,
| though, and their "pharmacists" didn't seem to know what it was.
|
| All told, if you can get a small number of lancets and strips to start
| out, you should be able to get everything for under $50, maybe quite a
| bit less than that. I originally got my brand-name meter, 50 strips,
| 200 lancets (enough for a few years, at least), and the lancet
| applicator for about $80 total.

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

Quoted message said:

Is it crazy to use a glucose meter to check your blood
when on a low carb diet and not a diabetic (as far as
you know)?

If no...what cheap glucose meters are worthy of buying?

For low-carb in and of itself, I don't see how it would help. If you want to
track your level of ketosis, then buy the keto strips. If you want to see
what kind of results you're getting, keep an eye on your waste size and
weight (over a period of time).

If you haven't done so recently, it is probably a good idea to have your
doctor check your blood levels, for sugar and whatever else. If you have
insurance, it shouldn't be too expensive.

x-no-archive: yes

em said:

For low-carb in and of itself, I don't see how it would help. If you
want to track your level of ketosis, then buy the keto strips. If you
want to see what kind of results you're getting, keep an eye on your
waste size and weight (over a period of time).

I'd watch the waist and save money on keto strips; they tell you nothing
about ketosis level, only how many ketones are in your urine. You don't
need to know that.

Quoted message said:

If you haven't done so recently, it is probably a good idea to have your
doctor check your blood levels, for sugar and whatever else. If you have
insurance, it shouldn't be too expensive.

Fasting blood glucose, the test doctors typically screen with, misses
most diabetics until they're many years advanced in the disease. Casual
testing in the office can miss post meal spikes, which occur about 45-60
minutes after eating for most folks.

Susan

em said:

For low-carb in and of itself, I don't see how it would help. If you want to
track your level of ketosis, then buy the keto strips.

ok but can you buy the keto strips at local Walmart?

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Quoted message said:

em said:

For low-carb in and of itself, I don't see how it would help. If you want to
track your level of ketosis, then buy the keto strips.

ok but can you buy the keto strips at local Walmart?

You can waste your money on them in any pharmacy, but save it.

Susan

Susan said:

Quoted message said:

ok but can you buy the keto strips at local Walmart?

You can waste your money on them in any pharmacy, but save it.

ok..so it sounds like glucose meter better then

x-no-archive: yes

Quoted message said:

Susan said:

Quoted message said:

ok but can you buy the keto strips at local Walmart?

You can waste your money on them in any pharmacy, but save it.

ok..so it sounds like glucose meter better then

Only if you have bg issues. It may be VERY useful, or not at all, as I
mentioned earlier. But ketostix are useless for measuring your ketosis
or the effectiveness of your diet.

Susan

Quoted message said:

em said:

For low-carb in and of itself, I don't see how it would help. If you want to
track your level of ketosis, then buy the keto strips.

ok but can you buy the keto strips at local Walmart?

Pretty much any pharmacy has them. They are not expensive.
You'll note that some people don't value the use of sticks to
detect ketosis (technically its ketonuria), but that the Atkins
process uses ketosis. Many of the people who don't value the
sticks aren't on Atkins.

Go get the sticks. Use them. See if being in and out of ketosis
has any effect on your month-to-month loss rate and if being in
ketosis has any effect on your ability to practice portion control.
Then form your own conclusion on the value of the sticks.