Blood Sugar Levels
In most people's bodies, the amount of glucose (sugar) in their blood is fairly constant. When the level gets too high or too low, there is a good possibility of your becoming ill.
Checking and keeping track of your blood sugar level can help you take better care especially when you have diabetes. Monitoring your blood sugar will help you understand how your food habits, activity levels, stress, medicine and insulin affect your blood sugar level. This vital piece of information will help you stay healthy and avert or delay diabetic complications such as loss of vision and renal failure. For monitoring your blood sugar levels, you will require a glucose meter, alcohol pads, sterile finger lancets and sterile test strips. See your health insurance plan to check whether they will pay for your glucose meter.
Just follow the doctor's advice and the instructions that accompany the glucose meter. As various glucose meters work differently, be sure to check with your doctor for advice as per your requirements. Always wash your hands and dry them before going ahead with the test.
Clean the area that you are going to prick with an alcohol pad. With most glucose meters, you have to get a drop of blood from your fingertip. But you can also use your forearm, thigh or the fleshy part of your hand with other meters.
Use the sterile lancet to prick yourself and get a drop of blood and then place the drop of blood on the test strip. Insert the test strip into the glucose meter following instructions correctly. The meter will give a number for your blood sugar level. Note down these results. You can even keep track of your food habits, the time when you took medicine or insulin, and your activity levels during the day. In this way, you will be able to check how these factors affect your blood sugar. Consult your doctor about what is a good range for your blood sugar level and the corrective step if your blood sugar is not within that range.
