Hello not liking diagnosis

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foodismedicine

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Hello members,

I am managing type 2 diabetes through a low carb diet and no medication.

I thought a CGM might help to monitor my blood sugar but the prices are outrageous. It doesn't help that CGMs are being worn like a fashion accessory by some half baked influencers. It feels like diabetes is the health condition that companies line up to screw money out of you. Feeling cheesed off but hopefully the forum will connect me to others in the same boat.
 
Hello, welcome. @foodismedicine .Unfortunately it’s just business with these companies. They don’t seem to do “it” for the world peace & love. But they do work. Whatever you do. Don’t try the non-invasive BG watches? Total charlatans.
 
foodismedicine said:
Hello members,

I am managing type 2 diabetes through a low carb diet and no medication.

I thought a CGM might help to monitor my blood sugar but the prices are outrageous. It doesn't help that CGMs are being worn like a fashion accessory by some half baked influencers. It feels like diabetes is the health condition that companies line up to screw money out of you. Feeling cheesed off but hopefully the forum will connect me to others in the same boat.
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum.
Well done for tackling your condition by dietary changes and that can be very successful for people.
The problem with CGMs is as you say they are expensive but people can often over react to the information they give especially when they do not fully understand their limitations.
My personal opinion is that a strategic regime of testing with a home monitor using finger pricks will be substantially cheaper. A monitor will be a one off cost at about £15 with test strips at £8-£10 for 50 depending on the precise one. So you can do a lot of finger prick tests for the cost of a CGM.
So the money would be better spent on good quality suitable food.
Some people have found them useful for a one off free trial which can be had from Abbot but you do need a compatible phone. So that may be worth it for you to gain some information to base your meal choices. You could then use the finger pricks after that.
 
Hi and welcome.

If you have a Type 2 diagnosis and you have a smart phone which is compatible with the LibreLink app and many smart phones are, you can apply to Abbott for a free 14day trial of their Freestyle Libre 2 system. It is a no obligation trial. Obviously this is a one off option, but it might give you some useful insight into your body's response to certain foods/meals during that period.
More people using the system actually reduces the price and it is important to note that there has been an enormous amount of very expensive research and development gone into these products and continuing investment in improvement, so whilst they might seem expensive, I think we are incredibly fortunate that this technology has been developed and, without hope of possible profit, that investment would not happen and they would not get past the stage of being just a good idea. Lots of similar ideas never get to the production phase. The cost of producing them is just a very small part of the money needed to bring such devices to the market.

These sensors have revolutionised my diabetes management and taken an enormous amount of anxiety and uncertainty out of my daily life. I self funded for several months before I got them on prescription, so I am well aware of the cost of self funding, but despite being on a low income, it was well worth it for me however I am so relieved and grateful that the NHS can now supply them on prescription for many of us on insulin, as they really are a game changer.

A cheaper cost alternative is buying a Blood Glucose meter and test strips and doing some spot testing around meals (typically just before you eat and 2 hours afterwards) to see how your body coped. This is how many Type 2s on this forum self fund their testing and successfully learn how to manage their diabetes with diet and exercise.

I hope you are able to benefit from the free Libre2 trial. If you need a link to the appropriate page on Abbott's website, just ask and someone will post it.
 
Hi @foodismedicine and welcome to the forum!

I can understand your frustration with the pricing of the CGMs. For something that is often necessary - the costs do add up. However as other Users have suggested, do think of perhaps trialling the system for free to first of all see how you like it, if you find it helpful at all, but then also the two weeks could give you valuable insight into your usual go-to meals and how your body reacts to them.
 
Hello @foodismedicine, welcome to the Forum. I agree there is benefit from trying the Libre 2 on a free trial. But, and I'm not remotely medically qualified to offer anything other than a suggestion, I would spend a month (at least) using a meter with test strips to get a sense of what my BG is routinely doing before trialling the 14 day CGM.

My logic is that first any CGM should be checked against some fp tests to be sure the CGM readings from interstitial bloods are close to actual BG results from fps. Using test strips and a meter does need learning a bit of technique to make that a smooth and simple process. During the 14 day CGM trial, if a CGM reading seems really wrong (high or low), then it is normal to do an fp to verify that possible rogue result. Consequently the benefit of the 14 days of CGM data could be "watered down" by needing to first faff around with learning how to get fp results.

Secondly, I think if you've got a months worth of fp readings you will have a good sense of what your CGM readings might look like. Your spot results a few times daily would make a lot more sense once seen on a CGM plot. This basic understanding could allow you to quickly focus on meals or specific foods that give you BG spikes. Or find out how exercise and activity affects your BG. Or just zone in during the 14 day trial on any peculiarities that your series of fp results have brought to your attention. From this strategy of mastering fps and having some usable data you would, in my opinion, get far more out of the results from a CGM.

You could even revert to fps for a further month after your CGM trial and then purchase a one-off 2nd sensor, using that to learn even more about BG oddities. Or even to help you while away from home and needing to gauge hotel or cafe foods. The permutations are endless with "once in a while" sensors. If you meticulously log all your sensor results, with records of meal content, a subsequent look back at those records from the web-based LibreView site could also be helpful and revealing of repeating trends.

I offer these thoughts, after 12 months from first diagnosis in Feb '20 with just fps and then receiving Libre 2 in Feb '21. It all made my new CGM results so much more revealing, because I had a fair sense of what I expected to see and could quickly adjust my lifestyle to counter my unsatisfactory CGM readings. The daily graphs quickly allowed me to see BG changes I'd influenced AND allowed me to repeat those experiments and verify what was happening. That sort of experimenting from just fps is very drawn out!

Most of all I knew what to expect from CGM results.
 
I got no idea why the Libre can’t be prescribed to all diabetics. Those interested after diagnosis should be allowed to engage with the condition, possibly helping HCPs following the patient on better understanding?
 
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum.
Well done for tackling your condition by dietary changes and that can be very successful for people.
The problem with CGMs is as you say they are expensive but people can often over react to the information they give especially when they do not fully understand their limitations.
My personal opinion is that a strategic regime of testing with a home monitor using finger pricks will be substantially cheaper. A monitor will be a one off cost at about £15 with test strips at £8-£10 for 50 depending on the precise one. So you can do a lot of finger prick tests for the cost of a CGM.
So the money would be better spent on good quality suitable food.
Some people have found them useful for a one off free trial which can be had from Abbot but you do need a compatible phone. So that may be worth it for you to gain some information to base your meal choices. You could then use the finger pricks after that.
Click to expand...
Thank you Leadinglights. Spending the money on good quality food works for me. I got the hang of the test strips and I can get a reading without making several pin pricks now. I may look at a free trial at some point. Thank you. 🙂
 
rebrascora said:
Hi and welcome.

If you have a Type 2 diagnosis and you have a smart phone which is compatible with the LibreLink app and many smart phones are, you can apply to Abbott for a free 14day trial of their Freestyle Libre 2 system. It is a no obligation trial. Obviously this is a one off option, but it might give you some useful insight into your body's response to certain foods/meals during that period.
More people using the system actually reduces the price and it is important to note that there has been an enormous amount of very expensive research and development gone into these products and continuing investment in improvement, so whilst they might seem expensive, I think we are incredibly fortunate that this technology has been developed and, without hope of possible profit, that investment would not happen and they would not get past the stage of being just a good idea. Lots of similar ideas never get to the production phase. The cost of producing them is just a very small part of the money needed to bring such devices to the market.

These sensors have revolutionised my diabetes management and taken an enormous amount of anxiety and uncertainty out of my daily life. I self funded for several months before I got them on prescription, so I am well aware of the cost of self funding, but despite being on a low income, it was well worth it for me however I am so relieved and grateful that the NHS can now supply them on prescription for many of us on insulin, as they really are a game changer.

A cheaper cost alternative is buying a Blood Glucose meter and test strips and doing some spot testing around meals (typically just before you eat and 2 hours afterwards) to see how your body coped. This is how many Type 2s on this forum self fund their testing and successfully learn how to manage their diabetes with diet and exercise.

I hope you are able to benefit from the free Libre2 trial. If you need a link to the appropriate page on Abbott's website, just ask and someone will post it.
Click to expand...
Thank you Rebrascorer,
The free trial would work just to get an understanding of how food has an impact on my blood sugar. I can see myself getting too focused on the numbers and causing myself too much stress. Spending money on my health is better than buying shoes but not as much fun. 🙂
 
Proud to be erratic said:
Hello @foodismedicine, welcome to the Forum. I agree there is benefit from trying the Libre 2 on a free trial. But, and I'm not remotely medically qualified to offer anything other than a suggestion, I would spend a month (at least) using a meter with test strips to get a sense of what my BG is routinely doing before trialling the 14 day CGM.

My logic is that first any CGM should be checked against some fp tests to be sure the CGM readings from interstitial bloods are close to actual BG results from fps. Using test strips and a meter does need learning a bit of technique to make that a smooth and simple process. During the 14 day CGM trial, if a CGM reading seems really wrong (high or low), then it is normal to do an fp to verify that possible rogue result. Consequently the benefit of the 14 days of CGM data could be "watered down" by needing to first faff around with learning how to get fp results.

Secondly, I think if you've got a months worth of fp readings you will have a good sense of what your CGM readings might look like. Your spot results a few times daily would make a lot more sense once seen on a CGM plot. This basic understanding could allow you to quickly focus on meals or specific foods that give you BG spikes. Or find out how exercise and activity affects your BG. Or just zone in during the 14 day trial on any peculiarities that your series of fp results have brought to your attention. From this strategy of mastering fps and having some usable data you would, in my opinion, get far more out of the results from a CGM.

You could even revert to fps for a further month after your CGM trial and then purchase a one-off 2nd sensor, using that to learn even more about BG oddities. Or even to help you while away from home and needing to gauge hotel or cafe foods. The permutations are endless with "once in a while" sensors. If you meticulously log all your sensor results, with records of meal content, a subsequent look back at those records from the web-based LibreView site could also be helpful and revealing of repeating trends.

I offer these thoughts, after 12 months from first diagnosis in Feb '20 with just fps and then receiving Libre 2 in Feb '21. It all made my new CGM results so much more revealing, because I had a fair sense of what I expected to see and could quickly adjust my lifestyle to counter my unsatisfactory CGM readings. The daily graphs quickly allowed me to see BG changes I'd influenced AND allowed me to repeat those experiments and verify what was happening. That sort of experimenting from just fps is very drawn out!

Most of all I knew what to expect from CGM results.
Click to expand...
Hello @Proud to be erratic,
Sounds like using fps to get a sense of what is going on and then following that up with a second device would be useful. Also looking at how exercise and activity affects BG. I do need a whole life adjustment rather than focusing only on food. Learning to relax and enjoy life might help! Thank you so much. 🙂
 
As you are new to the forum you may not have seen the links to this low carb approach which many find successful so there may be some ideas that you could adopt to help you reduce your blood glucose. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
How long have you been diagnosed and what is your starting Hba1C as that will indicate how much work you need to do.
 
Hello,

Welcome to the forum. I'm a newish (July) type 2 also, managing with a low carb diet approach too. I started out by self financing a monitor and strips. It's very useful (as long as you remember to finger prick 2 hours after eating. If you forget, its not so useful!!)

I've started a free trial with the Libre (it fell out of my arm on Saturday but Abbott have offered me a free replacement which I'm waiting on) and I also have a Dexcom arriving this week. I won't be paying for them (but I can understand why they offer free trials because unravelling the data is fascinating and more fun than making myself bleed 5+ times per day!! I wonder if they do get people self financing because the trial draws them in).

I do wish they could be funded through the NHS more widely - if we're not on medications then our diet *is* our medication and it helps to see the 'side effects'. But I work for the NHS and given that our office printer is probably an upgraded carrier pigeon, about 20 years old and only works every other Thursday, I do get that it is entirely unlikely!!

To end on a positive, whether you have a CGM or not there is continuous expert support available to you here and I hope you enjoy spending time on the forum as much as I do.
 
We bought a new printer for home use just a few weeks ago as the existing one (colour laser printer) decided not to take up paper from its tray - just after we'd bought (sodding) new cartridges an' all, c'est la vie. New one is a wet ink colour printer/scanner/copier - and cost roughly £50. So we weren't honestly expecting it to be very good since both previous ones have cost hundreds. But it is - so far anyway! - perfectly adequate for our needs both for personal use and for OH's volunteering duties as treasurer of a local charity, invoices from suppliers, minutes, annual reports and whatever.
 
foodismedicine said:
Hello members,

I am managing type 2 diabetes through a low carb diet and no medication.

I thought a CGM might help to monitor my blood sugar but the prices are outrageous. It doesn't help that CGMs are being worn like a fashion accessory by some half baked influencers. It feels like diabetes is the health condition that companies line up to screw money out of you. Feeling cheesed off but hopefully the forum will connect me to others in the same boat.
Click to expand...
If you’re already managing your diabetes through a low carb diet and no medication then honestly a cgm is overkill. You can’t change the time or dose of medication based on the results so the cgm giving constant readings isn’t really necessary. Just seeing the size of the spike would be enough, so a test strip before and 2hrs after new foods to see if they work for you.

Even then, you wouldn’t expect to test every day as you’re probably eating some of the same foods regularly and once you know it works you don’t need to retest every time you eat it.
 
foodismedicine said:
Hello members,

I am managing type 2 diabetes through a low carb diet and no medication.

I thought a CGM might help to monitor my blood sugar but the prices are outrageous. It doesn't help that CGMs are being worn like a fashion accessory by some half baked influencers. It feels like diabetes is the health condition that companies line up to screw money out of you. Feeling cheesed off but hopefully the forum will connect me to others in the same boat.
Click to expand...
Yes we Type 2s are the 'goose that laid the golden egg' for Big Pharma. Let's hope AI can sort it out !
 
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