Wellness

[cherry]

Well, I have always had normal A1C results, but my Dr has never told me I didn't need to test everyday

I have to go to see her in a few weeks, and I am going to ask her about this.  I have a feeling she is going to say ,keep testing daily

https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterubel/2018/01/26/a-******-a-day-wont-keep-your-blood-sugar-away/#1a...

[Q4u]

I can eat the same things daily (and often do), but my stress levels can make a huge difference in my readings.  I also have normal A1C readings, but will take my reading at least twice a day.  This helps me understand if I'm a little (or a lot) stressed.  If I am, I sit down with a hot cup of herbal tea.  Really helps.....  

[Q4u]

I honestly don't believe that many Diabetic experts take into account anything other than food being responsible for BS spiking and higher A1C..... it's a multi-prong problem and I firmly believe that taking BS daily at least once is important.

[Glittergal]

My doctor told me to check three times a week--once before breakfast, and once before and after dinner.

[Moonchilde]

1) It’s going to depend on your doctor and how they choose to treat your diabetes - there’s a growing schism between those doctors who feel that low is good, low is better and those who feel that the new higher A1C levels are Da Thing and lots of people are being “overtreated” and numbers we have been taught are high, some doctors think are just swell. It makes me crazy.

2) It also depends on T1 or T2. Clearly, a T1 has to be testing all the time.

3) How long have you been diagnosed and testing, how steady are your numbers.

I was diagnosed about the same time as my supervisor at work. I was testing constantly because I hadn’t built up a knowledge bank of reactions/numbers.  After 3-4 months, in a discussion with her I learned that she only tested maybe a couple times a week or if she ate something new, and her A1C was WNL (within normal limits) for a T2.

Another few months after that, I got to the same place. If your A1C is acceptable, you largely eat the same foods from day to day, you know what your numbers are 2 hrs pp and they’re okay/good - no reason to continue testing every bite I eat because my doctor is fine with my numbers.

These days I only test when I want to see what my BG is before I leave the house, if I feel shaky, or if I eat something I don’t eat all the time and am curious. 

There is a difference between T1 and T2 testing, and between what they used to call “brittle” diabetics who are a loose cannon every time they eat, and diabetics who have a fairly steady reaction to food and medication.

Not going to be the same for everyone.

[151949]

Every patient is different - every doctor is different. Various doctors use various numbers. Our doctor is perfectly fine with my DH having an A1C of 7.0 though he takes a glucoser lowering med - but for me he insists I need to have my A1C under 6.1 despite I'm only on metformin. He is fine if DH's FBS is 140 - has a fit at me if mine is over 95 - go figure.

[Trinity11]

I think the problem with this blanket statement is that not all Type 2 diabetics have the same amount of insulin resistance and after years of having Type 2 diabetes pancreatic function declines necessitating insulin injections.

The moment a Type 2 diabetic needs insulin, testing becomes mandatory. Just feeling good means little to nothing. Playing a guessing game testing once in awhile, if a patient is taking insulin, could be a disaster waiting to happen. Same for the patient that takes sulfonylureas which have the potential for hypoglycemia.

Also it is myth that only Type 1 diabetics go into ketoacidosis. The same can happen to a Type 2 diabetic that no longer produces much insulin. A simple C Peptide test can determine just how much the pancreas is functionig. If a patient only tests sporadically, they would have little to no idea what trends are taking place with their blood sugars. The night before they could have a 400 and the following morning have a 120. Without testing how would they know?

Of course, telling patients that they don't need to test daily will help the insurance companies to keep down costs. They are pretty strict with just how many strips they allow per day....even for an insulin dependent Type 1 diabetic. I have to supplement what insurance allows with Reli-On from Walmart which are less expensive. I test 6-8 times per day. Some Type 2 diabetics do the same on insulin.

[pinkmochi]

@cherry You wouldn't test A1C daily since the A1C is a blood test showing the average blood glucose levels over the previous 3 months. You can test blood glucose levels daily.

[september]

@Trinity11. Have you tried any type of continous glucose monitor?  My daughter wears one.  It's small and attaches to her belly.  She prefers this to doing the numerous finger pricks.  

[cherry]

I do know that.  I thought it was understood, I was talking about testing my  blood sugar everyday @pinkmochi