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10 Tips on Choosing a Diabetes
Blood Glucose Meter With the wide range of blood glucose meters on
the market it can be confusing to know which meter you should choose and why.
The key point to remember when choosing a glucose meter is to make sure the meter
meets your needs. Here are 10 important tips to help you choose the right meter:
1. Size and shape - if you want to carry your glucose meter around
with you then it is important that the meter you choose is small so that it can
slip in to your pocket easily. The smallest glucometer on the market is the Trueone
Meter. The One
Touch Ultra Mini is only slightly larger but easier to hold.
2.
Units - Some blood glucose meters measure in mmol/l and others measure
in mg/dl. It's easy to switch between the two. If you want to convert a mmol/l
reading to mg/dl all you need to do is multiply by 18. It doesn't really matter
which units you use, what is important is that you know which units your meter
measures in and so does your doctor. Click on our glucose
meter range to see the different meters available. 3. Price
- remember when you purchase a meter it is not just the up front cost of the meter
you should look at but also the cost of the test strips and lancets. In the long
run meters which use low cost test strips will be cheaper. Click on the
test
strips link and lancets
links above to learn more about the costs of different products. 4. Brand
- The blood glucose meter market is dominated by 2 major players, Accu-chek (Roche)
and One Touch (Lifescan). Both these companies are global brands and have a strong
customer service record. If you are going to purchase a meter it is better to
choose one of the big brands as if you need any assistance their service is usually
of a very high standard. Both brands are always designing new glucose meters.
Accu-chek's latest meter is the Accu-chek
Mobile and Lifescan is the One
Touch Ultra Mini. 5. Screen display - if you need reading
glasses or find small writing hard to read then make sure the meter you choose
has a big screen with clear readings. This can be especially important for those
people whose sight is affected by their diabetes. The Accu-chek
Compact Plus and One
Touch Ultra 2 have good screens with large readings but still well
designed to make them compact. 6. PC link - with some meters (in
particular One
Touch Ultra 2) you can link up the readings you've taken to your computer
and it can be used to plot graphs or keep a long term record of your glucose readings.
This is great for those technically minded. With the One Touch brands you can
purchase the required cable and for some meters the software is free. 7.
Lancets - recent advances in lancet technology has meant that pricking
your finger is not as painful as it used to be. The Accu-chek
Aviva has a new innovative lancet system which never actually exposes
the lancet until it is used. The end result is there is less chance of accidents
and it is safer. To learn more visit Accu-chek Multiclix
Lancing Device. 8. Alternative site testing - tired of
having to use your fingers for testing? Some meters allow you to test elsewhere
on the body and provide an extra testing cap to allow this. This can be great
if your fingers have become very sore but if your blood glucose levels are changing
fast then the fingers are still the best place to test, other areas won't pick
up the changes as fast. The One
Touch Ultra Mini comes with a clear alternative site testing cap to
allow for testing on the arms. 9. Blood Sample Size - Glucose meters
which need a small blood sample size, need less blood when you prick your fingers
and this can mean less pain. The best meter for this is the Freesyle
lite which only needs 0.4 microlitres of blood. This should mean that
using this product would be less painful then a meter with a larger blood sample.
10. Drum - if you like the idea of an automated test strip system
then consider the Accu-chek
Compact Plus. The meter has a unique feature where instead of having
to insert the test strip into the meter each time, the meter contains the test
strip inside and feeds it out to you when you test. It's a novel way of testing
and reduces handling the fiddly test strips.
Hopefully, using the tips
above you can narrow done what you need for a glucose meter. If you need more
help with making a choice visit our glucose
meter comparison table which compares the main brands of glucose meters
against each other to make your choice a lot easier.
Related
Articles
- Glucometer
comparison table - A
Different Glucose Meter guide
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