BG Monitoring Variations Question
 

Do any of you know why you can take 2 bg readings within one minute of each other (without having ingested anything, and see differences of 15-20 pts.? I am guessing that maybe this is a test strip issue?

Yes, this happens all the time. You can take blood sugar readings, one after another, and probably never get the same reading. The best blood sugar meters on the market are still only within 10% to 20% accurate. This is just one of the many problems with having diabetes. The world of technology is still lagging for us.

Well I can only hope that it is overestimating my blood sugar readings then. But I can see how this could be a real problem for some...when the numbers are that far off and you are depwnding on them to register highs accuratelt, and lows accurately. Being type 2 lows almost never happen for me. Had a couple of lows before I was diagnosed however...and they were not fun...

Thanks Dano!

Asking one of the more obvious questions... you did clean your hands first? you can pick up all kinds of invisible contaminates. I keep Alcohol Swabs at the ready, and get pretty consistent readings.

-Steve:)

Yes...It is the norm for me ti wash my hands first. Also - I did mot touch anything foodlike in the 1 minute between the first and second readings. 

OK, then I'm at a loss. I use the accu-check compact plus, and I just took 2 readings no more than 10 minutes apart... the first was 118 and the second was 117. The Compact Plus uses a drum of 17 strips at a time, that the meter automatically fetches, never touched by human hands. (The whole unit is self-contained including the lance, which is what I like) maybe that makes a difference some how.

-Steve:)

thanks for your reply Steve
 

Thanks for taking a moment to reply to my post, Steve. My strips have been in some hot and humid temps lately. Figured that maybe the strips are starting to go. It's a thought. I have a One Touch Select (which is new). Yours sounds terrific!

Steve. I also use the Accu-check plus using strips in a drum. Do you find an occasional strip that won't accept blood in adequate quantity? I don't know if I'm doing something wrong or if it's a strip issue... And I don't wash my hands.... Sounds gross to admit and I guess I'll start using my antibacterial goo

The nutritionist told me that using alcohol based products (hand sanitizer, alcohol swabs, etc.), have the ability to alter a result. She recommended I wash w/ regular soap & water & I'm careful handling the strips. I use OneTouch Ultra Mini & so far, I've not had any out of the ordinary results. 

BG Monitoring Variations Question
 

I was using the Bayer Contour and saw as most of you did wildly varying readings even when taking seconds apart. Yes I cleaned my hands with alcohol for awhile and let them dry, but it was drying my skin out too much, so just use soap and warm water now, be sure to give ample time to let your skin dry after washing. In some tests I even used the same blood sample and still got varying results. So I switched to the ACCU-CHEK Aviva. This meter and strips have been excellent, not usually varying more than 5 or less, even if I switch fingers or hands. And the strips take noticeably less blood as the blood is sucked into the strip more easily and quickly. And with the savings card that came with the meter I get 50% savings on my test strips off my co-pay, which makes them quite economical.