How To Check Low Blood Sugar At Home

How Do I Pay For These Tests And Supplies

Medicare, Medicaid and most private insurance plans pay for the A1C test and some of the cost of supplies for checking your blood sugar. Check your plan or ask your health care team for help finding low cost or free supplies. Ask your health care team what to do if you run out of test strips. For more information about Medicare and diabetes, go to .

What Are Blood Sugar Levels

Your blood sugar levels, also known as blood glucose levels, are a measurement that show how much glucose you have in your blood. Glucose is a sugar that you get from food and drink. Your blood sugar levels go up and down throughout the day and for people living with diabetes these changes are larger and happen more often than in people who don’t have diabetes.

You can check your sugar levels yourself by doing a finger-prick test, by using a flash glucose monitor or with a continuous glucose monitor . You can do this a number of times a day helping you keep an eye on your levels as you go about your life and help you work out what to eat and how much medication to take. Find out your ideal target range.

But not everyone with diabetes needs to check their levels like this. Youll need to if you take certain diabetes medication. Always talk to your healthcare team if youre not sure whether thats you theyll give you advice on whether to check them yourself and how often.

And theres also something called an HbA1c, which measures your average blood sugar level from the previous few months. Everyone with diabetes is entitled to this check.

High blood sugar levels increase your risk of developing serious complications. However you manage your diabetes, stay in the know about your blood sugar levels.

What If I Have Trouble Getting To My Blood Sugar Goals

There may be times when you have trouble reaching your blood sugar goals. This does not mean that you have failed. It means that you and your health care team should see if changes are needed. Call your health care team if your blood sugar is often too high or too low. Taking action will help you be healthy today and in the future.

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Whats My Target Range

You might be asking, what’s the normal range for blood sugar levels? The answer is, there is a healthy range that you should ideally be aiming for. The infographics above show the general guidelines, but your individual target range for your blood sugar levels may be different. Youll healthcare team will agree with you what it is.

Youll get different readings at different times of the day, depending on things like what youve eaten and how much you are moving around. Heres a guide to help you get started on finding your target range:

If youre a child with Type 1 diabetes

• when you wake up and before meals: 4 to 7mmol/l
• after meals: 5 to 9mmol/l

If youre an adult with Type 1 diabetes

• when you wake up and before meals: 5 to 7mmol/l
• before meals at other times of the day: 4 to 7mmol/l

If you have Type 2 diabetes

• before meals: 4 to 7mmol/l
• two hours after meals: less than 8.5mmol/l

Recommended Blood Sugar Targets For Most People With Diabetes*

Your targets may not be the same as the examples in this chart. Your targets are important and should be specific to you.

* This information is based on the Diabetes Canada 2018 Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Management of Diabetes in Canada and is a guide.** A1C is a measurement of your average blood sugar control for the last two to three months and approximately 50 per cent of the value comes from the last 30 days.

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A Low Blood Sugar Level Without Diabetes

A low blood sugar level is uncommon in people who do not have diabetes.

Possible causes include:

• a gastric bypass
• other medical conditions, such as problems with your hormone levels, pancreas, liver, kidneys, adrenal glands or heart
• some medicines, including quinine

See a GP if you think you keep getting symptoms of a low blood sugar level. They can arrange some simple tests to check if your blood sugar level is low and try to find out what’s causing it.

The Big Picture: Checking Your Blood Sugar

Blood sugar monitoring is the primary tool you have to find out if your blood glucose levels are within your target range. This tells you your blood glucose level at any one time.

Its important for blood sugar levels to stay in a healthy range. If glucose levels get too low, we can lose the ability to think and function normally. If they get too high and stay high, it can cause damage or complications to the body over the course of many years.

The logging of your results is vital. When you bring your log to your healthcare provider, youll have a good picture of your body’s response to your diabetes care plan. To help keep track of your levels, we have a glucose log. We also have a blood glucose log available for purchase that is smaller so you can carry it with you.

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What If The Blood Glucose Check Result Doesnt Sound Right

If youre not convinced that a result is correct, heres a suggested check list:

• Have the strips expired?
• Is the meter too hot or too cold?
• Is the calibration code correct?
• Is the battery low or flat?

All meters will give a different result with a different drop of blood. As long as there is not a big difference there is not usually cause for concern.

The accuracy of all meters can be checked with meter-specific liquid drops called control solutions. If you are concerned, you can arrange to have your meter checked with a control solution. Your Credentialled Diabetes Educator or pharmacist can help you with this.

What If I Cant Get A Drop Of Blood For A Fingerstick

If you want to get blood from your fingertip, try washing your hands in hot water to get the blood flowing. Then dangle your hand below your heart for a minute. Prick your finger quickly and then put your hand back down below your heart. You might also try slowly squeezing the finger from the base to the tip.

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How To Deal With Low Blood Sugar

In this article:

• Final Word

Low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, happens when the glucose level in the blood falls below the normal range.

Given that glucose is your bodys primary source of energy, this condition can make you run out of steam and can give rise to a range of discomforting symptoms. Thus, you have to take measures to pump up your dwindling blood sugar back within the normal range in order to feel normal again.

If left untreated, your blood sugar level can fall further, which could induce serious complications such as loss of consciousness and seizures. Plus, a severely low blood sugar level poses a risk to your life if not treated immediately.

For those taking insulin, a low blood sugar level is considered to be less than 70 mg/dL. For those who are not diabetic and/or dont take insulin, blood sugar levels typically need to fall below 60 mg/dL before they would experience symptoms.

What Are Target Blood Sugar Levels For People With Diabetes

A target is something that you aim for or try to reach. Your health care team may also use the term goal. People with diabetes have blood sugar targets that they try to reach at different times of the day. These targets are:

• Right before your meal: 80 to 130
• Two hours after the start of the meal: Below 180

Talk with your health care team about what blood sugar numbers are right for you.

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How To Use A Blood Glucose Meter:

• After washing your hands, insert a test strip into your meter.
• Use your lancing device on the side of your fingertip to get a drop of blood.
• Touch and hold the edge of the test strip to the drop of blood and wait for the result.
• Your blood glucose level will appear on the meter’s display.

Note: All meters are slightly different, so always refer to your user’s manual for specific instructions.

Setting Up Your Alphatrak 2 For Ferrets

Even though the AlphaTRAK 2 is specifically designed for dogs and cats, you can use the dog code setting to test your ferrets blood glucose levels at home.

UPDATE: On 4/28/2020 I reached out to Zoetis, the company that makes the AlphaTRAK 2, and spoke with their VMIPS team and this is what they said:

If somebody is using the AlphaTRAK 2 with AlphaTRAK 2 test strips, in order to test a ferrets blood glucose levels, they should use the dog code that is listed on the test strip bottle. Each bottle is different.

When I asked why some ferret owners believed they should be using code 7 for ferrets, she said:

If someone had an older model of the AlphaTRAK and are using AlphaTRAK 2 test strips with it, Zoetis recommends using code 7 for any animal. Code 7 is the best way with the out of date device to get the closest, most accurate bg reading for ferrets.

What does this mean? If you have the AlphaTRAK 2 , use the dog code. If you have the older AlphaTRAK , use code 7.

You will want to insert a new test strip into the monitor and -after it turns on- press the C button to advance the numbers 1-100 until you land on your proper code.

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Manage Your Carb Intake

Your body breaks carbs down into sugars , and then insulin helps your body use and store sugar for energy.

When you eat too many carbs or have insulin-function problems, this process fails, and blood glucose levels can rise.

However, there are several things you can do about this.

The American Diabetes Association recommends managing carb intake by counting carbs and being aware of how many you need .

Some studies find that these methods can also help you plan your meals appropriately, further improving blood sugar management (

The recommended daily intake of fiber is about 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. Thats about 14 grams for every 1,000 calories .

Summary

Eating plenty of fiber can help with blood sugar management. Soluble dietary fiber is the most effective.

How Do Carbs Affect Blood Sugar

Carbs in food make your blood sugar levels go higher after you eat them than when you eat proteins or fats. You can still eat carbs if you have diabetes. The amount you can have and stay in your target blood sugar range depends on your age, weight, activity level, and other factors. Counting carbs in foods and drinks is an important tool for managing blood sugar levels. Make sure to talk to your health care team about the best carb goals for you.

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Choosing A Blood Glucose Monitor

A blood glucose monitor, testing strips, and a lancet to draw the blood are all necessary for testing. Some testing kits offer all three, while others require separate purchases for each piece.

People with diabetes use many testing strips, and so it may be wise to carefully consider the cost of the testing strips as well as the monitor.

Some other tips for buying a monitor include:

• Select one with automatic coding to avoid the need to code in results with every test.
• Check insurance plans to see if an insurer only covers certain monitors.
• Look at whether the unit stores previous data.
• Consider portability, since larger units can be difficult to carry around.
• Think about blood sample size, particularly for people who do not like pricking themselves.

Monitors that require a smaller blood sample may be more comfortable as the depth of the lancet can be less.

Many people with diabetes have no signs of the disease at all. However, the lack of symptoms does not necessarily mean the absence of diabetes.

When symptoms occur, many of the effects of type 1 and type 2 diabetes are the same since both affect blood sugar regulation in the body. Symptoms include:

• increased hunger and thirst

Place A Treat On Your Ferrets Belly

We strongly recommend using salmon oil as a healthy treat to distract your ferret while you draw their blood. It is healthy and it will take your ferret a while to lick off, giving you plenty of time to get a good blood sample.

Also, this is a great time to push your test strip fully into the monitor to turn on your AlphaTRAK 2. You have two minutes from now to get your blood sample!

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Why It Is Done

If you have diabetes, testing your blood glucose levels at home provides information about:

• Your blood sugar level at the time of testing. It is important to know when your blood sugar is high or low, to prevent emergency situations from developing. It is also important to treat consistently high blood sugar levels so you can decrease your chances of developing heart, blood vessel, and nerve complications from diabetes.
• How much insulin to take before each meal. If you take rapid-acting or short-acting insulin before meals, the blood sugar test results can help you determine how much insulin to take before each meal. If your blood sugar level is high, you may need extra insulin. If your blood sugar level is low, you may need to eat before you take any insulin.
• How exercise, diet, stress, and being ill affect your blood sugar levels. Testing your blood sugar can help you learn how your body responds to these things. Where possible, you can adjust your lifestyle to improve your blood sugar level.

Home blood sugar testing also may be used to:

• Test blood sugar levels in people who have symptoms of high blood sugar or low blood sugar .

How It Is Done

Checking your blood sugar involves pricking your finger, palm, or forearm with a lancet to collect a drop of blood. The blood drop is placed on a test strip, which you insert into the blood glucose meter. The instructions for testing are slightly different for each blood glucose meter model. Follow the instructions that came with your meter.

• Wash your hands with warm, soapy water. Dry them well with a clean towel. You may also use an alcohol wipe to clean your finger or other site. But make sure your hands are dry before the test.
• Insert a clean lancet into the lancet device.
• Remove a test strip from the test strip bottle. Replace the lid right away to keep moisture away from the other strips.
• Follow the instructions that came with your meter to get it ready.
• Use the lancet device to stick the side of your fingertip with the lancet. Do not stick the tip of your finger. Some blood sugar meters use lancet devices that take the blood sample from other sites, such as the palm of the hand or the forearm. But the finger is usually the most accurate place to test blood sugar.
• Put a drop of blood on the correct spot on the test strip.
• Apply pressure with a clean cotton ball to stop the bleeding.
• Follow the directions that came with the meter to get the results.
• Write down the results and the time that you tested your blood. Some meters will store the results for you.

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How To Do A Finger

Your healthcare team will show you how to do it the first time, but these are the key steps:

• Wash your hands with soap and warm water. Dont use wet wipes as the glycerine in them can affect the test result. Make sure your hands are warm so its easier to get blood and wont hurt as much.
• Take a test strip and slot it into the meter to turn it on. Some meters will have tests strips built in.
• Remove the cap from your finger prick device and put in a new lancet. Then put the cap back on and set the device by pulling or clicking the plunger.
• Choose which finger to prick but avoid your thumb or index finger . And dont prick the middle, or too close to a nail. Place the device against the side of your finger and press the plunger. Use a different finger each time and a different area.
• Take your meter with the test strip and hold it against the drop of blood. Itll tell you if the test strip is filled, usually by beeping.
• Before you look at your reading, check your finger. Use a tissue to stop bleeding, then use it to take out the lancet and throw it away in your sharps bin.
• You can use the same tissue to take out the test strip and throw that away too. Taking out the strip will usually turn the meter off.