Hey all,

Newbie here. Been on this diet for 5 days now and feeling pretty good. Need some advice though. I am overweight but have never had blood sugar issues to date.

I got a Blood Sugar Monitor from my chemist yesterday and tried it yesterday 2 hours after lunch. It was a very reassuring 5.8 and my wife was a happy 4.9. Although very relieved we decided to monitor it for a few days to see if there were spikes.

Imagine our surprise this morning when, after a 13 hour fast I tested 8.2 and my wife tested 10.2. Are these ranges possible?
I’m using a FreeStyle Optium Neo, is this reliable?

Hey Capo, I’ve been told that there is always some kind of band of error with finger prick testers, but that overall they give an ‘accurate enough’ measure for my daily management, and my home tests generally fit the pattern that the 3 monthly average (HBA1C) that the doctor suggests. The only true measure is apparently through a lab analysis. It can be worth doing 2 tests at the same time as a comparison measure, yesterday I was really surprised by one measure and then a minute later it was closer to what I expected (3.5 mmol lower). Also, make sure you wash your hands well before any test as food or whatnot on the skin can make a huge difference. None of which should imply that you might not want to get some tests done for reassurance, if it was the case that your sugar was too high its an excellent opportunity to do something about it while its controllable, rather than go down the nasty roads that I and probably others have followed through not knowing and not coping with a full blown diabetes diagnosis.

Thanks Bruce,

I think the tester will take a bit of getting used to. We took it again 2 hours after breakfast and were both below 5. Could the readings halve within a few hours?

Well, I’ve been taking my morning blood sugar at around 7:30am every day for 2 weeks, and they have increased from 4,6 to 7,8 (while being on the diet).

I’m hoping that they will start to come down again after another few days.

Hi Capo
Lots have people have written that their sugar is higher on waking. There’s a technical name for it which I’ve forgotten. I imagine it’s to get people some energy in the morning, if they have normal Sugar levels that’s not a problem. I think the advise to get a doc to test you is sound.
Penny