How do I choos the right glucose meter

What is glucose?

Carbohydrate foods are converted to glucose in the stomach and intestines. Glucose is absorbed into your blood. From there it goes to the muscles and organs, which makes glucose a fuel for your body.

Your body uses insulin to get glucose into your body cells. your cells then convert the glucose into energy, so you can think and move. From your brain to your gut, all organs need glucose to work.

Why should I pay attention to the amount of glucose?

Blood sugar tests – or self-monitoring of blood glucose – provide useful information for diabetes management. It can help you:

● Assess how well you achieve general treatment goals      

● Understand how diet and exercise affect blood sugar levels      

● Understand how other factors, such as illness or stress, affect blood sugar      

● Monitoring the effect of diabetes medications on blood sugar levels      

● Determine whether the blood sugar level is high or low      

When should I measure my glucose?

Your doctor will advise you how often to check your blood sugar. In general, the frequency of testing depends on the type of diabetes you have and your treatment plan.

Type 1 diabetes. Your doctor may recommend a blood sugar test four to 10 times a day if you have type 1 diabetes. You may need to test for meals and snacks, before and after exercise, before bed, and sometimes during the night. You may also need to check your blood sugar more often if you are ill, change your daily routine, or start a new medication.

Type 2 diabetes. If you use insulin to control type 2 diabetes, your doctor may recommend a blood sugar test a few times a day, depending on the type and amount of insulin you are taking.

Testing is usually recommended before meals and at bedtime when taking multiple injections daily. If you’re only using long-acting insulin, you may only need to test twice a day: before breakfast and dinner. If you control type 2 diabetes with non-insulin medications or with a diet and exercise alone, you may not need to test your blood sugar daily.

What does the result of a measurement say?

Blood sugar tests require the use of a small electronic device called a glucose meter. The meter measures the amount of sugar in a small blood sample, usually from your fingertip, that you place on a disposable test strip. Your doctor or diabetes advisor can recommend a suitable device. Your healthcare professional can also help you learn how to use a meter. It is important to choose a glucose meter that is ISO 15197 and TUV certified, such as the On Call Extra Glucose Meter. Follow the instructions that came with your glucose meter. The process usually works as follows:

  1. You turn on the glucose meter
  2. You put a test strip in the device
  3. Then you take the lancing device and put a lancet in it
  4. You now place the lancing device on a spot of the finger that is not so sensitive; e.g. the side
  5. You prick your finger with the lancing device
  6. Then hold the glucose meter with the test strip against the ball of blood.
  7. After that we have to wait for the result.

What should you pay attention to when choosing a glucose meter?

The meter reads the amount of sugar placed in a small blood sample on a disposable test strip, usually from your fingertip. There are many providers of this type of meter. The following points are important to be aware of.

The Glucose Meter Certifications

To guarantee an accurate measurement result, it is smart to choose a meter that is ISO 15197 and TUV certified.

The measuring range of the glucose meter

Not every meter has the same measuring range. It is obvious that you want a glucose meter that can measure as much as possible. After all, otherwise you may get an inaccurate result.

Meters with an HCT range of 30-55% are good glucose meters.

The time until the glucose meter gives the result

Since you often have to measure glucose one day when you have diabetes, it is not nice to have to wait long for your result. Especially in today’s busy world. So look at meters that give a quick measurement result. The fastest on the market returns results after 4 seconds.

How much blood you need to measure your glucose

You don’t want to get the feeling that you have to puncture yourself to get a result every time. Therefore, find a meter that needs as little blood as possible to measure your glucose value. There are meters that can do it with only 0.4ul. That’s a very miniscule drop of blood.

The enzyme used to measure glucose

If you think you are there then you are wrong. Each glucose meter uses enzymes, which are often on the test strip, to measure your glucose value. The enzyme reacts on the blood and therefore makes the calculation possible. So it is important to choose a meter that uses the right enzyme. After all, this increases the reliability of the measurement.

For example, there are meters that measure on the basis of the GDH-PQQ enzyme. This enzyme tends to include other ‘sugars’ such as maltose, galactose and xylose in its calculation. This can lead to incorrect values.

It is better to buy a meter that measures based on the GOD enzyme. This enzyme is safer and is unaffected by those other sugars.

How “smart” the test strip is

The glucose test strip used for the measurement contains a lot of technology to enable the measurement. For example, it contains the enzyme as described above, but may also contain elements to improve the meter calibration. This also helps the meter to give better results. So find a gauge that has an auto-calibration circuit in each strip.

Whether you can set alarms and reminders

You have other things on your mind during the day than measuring your glucose. It is therefore nice if the device helps you with this by making it possible to set reminders so that you always measure at the right moments.

And which is also nice if the device can raise the alarm when you threaten to have a hypo or hyper or create too many ketones.

It also helps if it is possible to save your test results so that you can easily compare them over a length of one month, for example. This is also something your doctor can benefit from.

Physical therapy with diabetes

Exercise has been shown to be important in diabetes for a number of reasons:

● It improves insulin sensitivity      

● It improves glucose tolerance *      

* scientifically proven in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

But also for:

● Improve stamina      

● Improve muscle strength      

● Improving the sense of balance      

● Improving the general well-being      

● Improvement of body composition and weight      

● Reducing the risks of heart disease, bone loss and the like      

The physiotherapist will carefully map out your complaints during the first appointment. your health and daily functioning are discussed and examined, after which a treatment plan is drawn up with you. This treatment plan is tailored to your physical options and wishes. The treatment takes into account other problems / complaints that affect your health.

Measure glucose with the On Call Extra meter

The On Call Extra meter is a glucose meter that;

✅ Provides highly accurate blood glucose monitoring 
✅ Only 4 seconds and only needs a small blood sample of 0.4 µL 
✅ HCT range of 30-55% 
✅ Uses the safe and more accurate GOD enzyme 
✅ Is easy to use 
✅ Used by thousands of health professionals and consumers worldwide  Accurate results that meet ISO15197 
✅ is TUV certified.