Julie Bove > wrote:

>I was first diagnosed by a random finger stick.
>
>I don't test my daughter all the time, but it has been recommended to me to
>test her at least once a year. Diabetes runs on both sides of my family and
>one side of her dad's.
>
>Apparently some people are just curious about their blood sugar. I haven't
>encountered any. Nobody has ever asked me to test them.

I certainly would be curious about my blood sugar, if I were receiving
no healthcare and was not already having it periodically tested.

I some years ago read a book (the title/author I cannot remember)
about what a person with no access to doctors or health coverage
might reasonably do to substitute for a doctor's routine care.
It included all sort of suggestions, from obvious ones like
home blood tests and blood pressure checks, to more obscure
things like testing your reflexes, doing your own digital
rectal exam, and having a friend carefully smell your breath.
(If your liver is going, your breath might smell like asparagus;
if it's your kidneys, then ammonia.)

The old-school low-tech way of testing for high blood sugar is to
taste your blood, and see if it is sweet.


Steve

In article >,
"Julie Bove" > wrote:

> "Steve Pope" > wrote in message
> ...

> > However, the target fasting range for a person with controlled diabetes is
> > 90 to 130, according to the Mayo Clinic site (and also, from what
> > Dan posted recently). Perhaps this is the source of the belief that
> > 80 is below normal.

I think it needs to be more carefully defined. I believe that the
target range of 90-130 probably applies more to diabetics who control
their BG with injected insulin.

> For me that is not just the fasting range. It is the range for everything.
> Not saying I am usually in it because at present I am not. However since I
> stopped taking the statin, I am seeing more numbers that are in that range
> and not the 400's that I was seeing.

Serious diabetics often have fairly individualized plans. My target for
two hours after dinner is under 160.

For instance, I woke up yesterday morning at 4:30AM. I don't know why.
My wife got up then also. I took my blood sugar, and it was 84. I knew
that I needed to do something. My wife saw the reading, and commented
that it looked like trouble. I told her that, well...it needed
attention. So I fixed a pot of oatmeal, after having my first cup of
coffee. We usually have something to eat more like 9AM, but I knew that
with the timed release insulin I had taken the night before, my blood
sugar would have probably dropped much too low by 9AM if it was 84 at
4:30AM. Now, if I had gotten up at 8AM and had a reading of 84, having
breakfast at 9AM would have been fine.

And, it's hard enough dealing with food and insulin, but my worst
problems have had to do with excess exercise! We go to church camp
every summer, and have gone for 25 years. The food is really great, and
plentiful. After I went on insulin, I assumed that I would have to
increase my insulin to compensate for eating more. Much to my surprise,
not only did my BG not go up, but it went far too low, several times.
It wasn't until I got home that I figured out what had happened.
Although the food is really good, I just hadn't eaten that much more.
More important, it's out in the woods, and there is no internet. Some
of the extra time was spent sitting and talking to people, but much was
spent out walking. And at home, I live on a flood plain, which is quite
flat. The church camp is in a redwood forest, and there are many steep
hills. So, subsequent years, I just drop my insulin by half as soon as
I get to camp. That's seems to work. Of course, I need to test my BG
far more often for a few days, with such a drastic change.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA

Dan Abel > wrote:

>> "Steve Pope" > wrote in message

>> > However, the target fasting range for a person with controlled diabetes is
>> > 90 to 130, according to the Mayo Clinic site (and also, from what
>> > Dan posted recently). Perhaps this is the source of the belief that
>> > 80 is below normal.

>I think it needs to be more carefully defined. I believe that the
>target range of 90-130 probably applies more to diabetics who control
>their BG with injected insulin. [..]
>Serious diabetics often have fairly individualized plans. My target for
>two hours after dinner is under 160.

Right, I should have qualified my statement above. I believe the Mayo
site has the appropriate weasel wording.


Steve

Julie Bove wrote:
>
> I don't test my daughter all the time, but it has been recommended to me to
> test her at least once a year. Diabetes runs on both sides of my family and
> one side of her dad's.
>
> Apparently some people are just curious about their blood sugar. I haven't
> encountered any. Nobody has ever asked me to test them.

Anyone who has a diabetic in the family should be curious about their
blood sugar and should be tested annually. With such a family history
lack of curiousity would be a bad sign to me - ignorance or avoidance?

On 1/25/2011 1:53 PM, Doug Freyburger wrote:
> Julie Bove wrote:
>>
>> I don't test my daughter all the time, but it has been recommended to me to
>> test her at least once a year. Diabetes runs on both sides of my family and
>> one side of her dad's.
>>
>> Apparently some people are just curious about their blood sugar. I haven't
>> encountered any. Nobody has ever asked me to test them.
>
> Anyone who has a diabetic in the family should be curious about their
> blood sugar and should be tested annually. With such a family history
> lack of curiousity would be a bad sign to me - ignorance or avoidance?


I have a family history and I also live with a Diabetic. I am very
cognizant of blood sugar levels and I'll "borrow" his equipment
periodically and check my own. My personal physician runs an A1C on me
every year. Happily the last one was 5.5 which is a good number.
Anything under 5.7 is not at risk.

--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

"Doug Freyburger" > wrote in message
...
> Julie Bove wrote:
>>
>> I don't test my daughter all the time, but it has been recommended to me
>> to
>> test her at least once a year. Diabetes runs on both sides of my family
>> and
>> one side of her dad's.
>>
>> Apparently some people are just curious about their blood sugar. I
>> haven't
>> encountered any. Nobody has ever asked me to test them.
>
> Anyone who has a diabetic in the family should be curious about their
> blood sugar and should be tested annually. With such a family history
> lack of curiousity would be a bad sign to me - ignorance or avoidance?

Well, my own family as in brother and dad both have diabetes. I believe
that my mom has it as well. I saw her labs. She does not know this. She
has told me that she had high BG on a couple of occasions but does not have
diabetes. She is big into denial. When I told her I had it, she told me I
didn't!

My friends have asked me about blood sugar. Some are diabetic, some are
not. All are of the age where they get a finger stick when they go for
their physical.