Blood testing

Status
Not open for further replies.
W

wilkie

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Help!!!!!::
Having had type 2 for 8 years and being classed as 'borderline' by my local diabetes clinic at the hospital I preferred to try the diet control method, the consultant agreed that this was okay I was advised to test my blood first thing each morning, I bought my own tester kit, but due to hospital spending cuts last year I was told to go to my doctors surgery for future checkups, on the first visit I was immediatley prescribed Metformin, as my HbA1c was up by0.5 since the last hospital check up, I refused the tablets and contiued to monitor myself my average is a reading of 8 on my monitor this is over a period of 3 months, at my check up this week I was informed not to check my blood as it was pointless, and that nurses had been brainwashed over the years in to providing blood monitors, I still refuse the Metformin, I do not like taking pills, as I also have hereditary high blood pressure this was 1 pill too many I am a healthy 62 male, any suggestions or comments, would be welcome I am unable to change my doctor as I:confused live in a small village
 
Hi Wilkie, welcome to the forum!🙂 I moved your thread to the General messageboard so it would be seen by more people.

There's always quite a discussion going on about how people are being advised about testing - some are told not to test, some twice a week, some more often. The general feeling is that you should test when the test can usefully tell you something about your reaction to food or exercise - you might test an hour after a meal and find that what you just ate has pushed your levels high, or you may not and then you'd be able to make a decision about eating that particular meal again.

What is your HbA1c? I only ask because a meter average doesn't necessarily correspond to your HbA1c as they measure very different aspects of blood sugar. The meter is just a 'snapshot' and cannot tell you what your level was half an hour earlier, for example.

I hope that you are able to get things under control so that you don't need the metformin, but do bear in mind that it may not be possible. Some people do extremely well on diet and exercise alone, but others need 'extra help' despite trying their hardest - everyone is different. You shouldn't consider it a failure if you do end up needing the medication - it is far better than the risk of diabetic complications.
 
thanx for replying last reading was 8.2 that was last October, I await new reading, blood taken today. since last reading I have lost approx 1 stone in weight, so i am hoping for a better result. I think it is the fixed attitude of some general practioners that can easily worry diabetes sufferers
 
Well done on losing the weight! I hope the new reading is an improvement as you've obviously worked hard over the past few months 🙂
 
welcome really gr8 weight loss

well done
 
Great you lost the weight.

My dad goes for regular check ups, but wil not test himself, he says that's why he goes for the checks. On avaerage he is around 8. The specialist said that as he got that reading on a regular basis 8 was probably normal for him personally.

I don't blame you not wanting the pills, I hate taking them too, but sometimes our bodies need a little extra help. Talk over your worries with the doctor.
 
My GP is not happy with my taking my blood readings. I was told I shouldn't have been given the testing kit.

Can readers come up with a medical and charitable reason for their antipathy towards self-testing?
 
Jean said:
My GP is not happy with my taking my blood readings. I was told I shouldn't have been given the testing kit.

Can readers come up with a medical and charitable reason for their antipathy towards self-testing?
Click to expand...

well i have never had any issues i was actually given 2 meters when i was diagnosed i have always thought testing bloods was a positive thing, how does yout GP expect you to have any sort of idea how you are coping if you are not keeping some kind of record of your BG levels, also it helps my GP when i go an d see him as he uses references to my diary on how well or how bad im doing .I cant see any bad thing about meters well apart from the daily rigmarole of taking bloods etc etc every day.
 
Two studies in 2007 and 2008 "proved" that Self-Monitoring of Blood Glucose does not help A1c in T2s. One went on to say that 10% of the participants became depressed.

At least thats what the headlines and conclusions said.

These have since been used as the basis of the justification of a cost cutting measure by the PCTs.

If you take a closer look at those studies, you'll notice that the patients were specifically instructed not to do anything with those results. The doctors appear only to have seen them after an A1c, so are likely to have ignored the BG results.

And the intention of the studies appears to have been to get T2s to stick more rigidly to the recommended diet of low fat and high carbs.

So the conclusions should perhaps have read:
1) SMBG does not help A1c if nobody actually attempts to learn anything from the readings (no...erm...sherlock)
2) Sticking more rigidly to a high carb diet does not help A1c (why would it?)
3) Getting people to test their BG, seeing it out of control and being able to do precisely sod all about it, makes them depressed.

One notable respondent to the BMJ when these were published recommended the depression study in particular for a "no **** sherlock award".

Justification for using a meter should always be based on learning from the readings about the effects of food, exercise and medication on the BG. If you're not going to do anything with the data, the exercise is utterly pointless.

Unfortuntely the NHS has been advising T2s to test in utterly pointless ways for decades, so that is their expectation of SMBG.
 
Last edited:
ohh well i still like to keep a diary if im doing it pointlessley then never mind i am but a fool
 
If you're using the results, or your doc is one of those who will actually take notice of it, its far from pointless.

Unfortunately other docs are not the same, as seen in this thread.
 
steff09 said:
ohh well i still like to keep a diary if im doing it pointlessley then never mind i am but a fool
Click to expand...

Dear Steff,

Are you saying that you do not do anything about it if your BG readings are above target!!!

Warmest Regards Dodger :confused:
 
I would agree that testing fasting every day for a type 2 is fairly pointless. Testing some fasting and before and after different meals is really useful though. If your Alc is at 8 then it is too high and testing would give you an idea of where things are not in range and give you the opportunity to change that.

Hope that you can challenge your GP to prescribe the strips so that you can get your A1c down.
 
p.s. hope you didnt think my long post was a reply to you, Steff. It was to answer Jean's question. You posted while I was still writing it.
 
no probs VBH


Dodger how do u mean ? should i be doing something if they are?:confused::confused:
 
steff09 said:
no probs VBH


Dodger how do u mean ? should i be doing something if they are?:confused::confused:
Click to expand...

Dear Steff,

I am adjusting my carbohydrate intake constantly so that I meet my targets. I don't always achieve it but I do most of the time so that my highest HbA1c in the last 10 years has been 5.8%. If I had been taking diabetes drugs I doubt that I would have achieved figures close to mine - at least after the first few years.

Warmest Regards Dodger 🙂
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top