Your doctor can use blood tests to identify diabetes, prediabetes, and gestational diabetes. The results of the blood tests indicate whether your blood sugar, also known as blood glucose, is higher than what is healthy for you.
Additionally, these blood tests can be used to determine the kind of diabetes you have. You can use diabetes test strips to know your blood sugar levels. However, it cannot accurately tell or diagnose you if you have diabetes.
Test Strips For Diabetes
Diabetes test strips make blood glucose monitoring simpler. This test is especially vital for people with diabetes. The strips may “read” your blood sugar levels using glucose meters.
Diabetes management becomes easier when you are aware of your blood glucose level. Doing so will let you identify foods, medicines, and activities that positively or negatively impact your blood sugar.
To check your blood sugar using a blood strip, follow these steps:
- Place a diabetes test strip into your blood glucose meter.
- Prick your fingertip with the meter’s tiny needle.
- Squeeze out a drop of blood and touch it with the edge of the test strip.
You can know your blood sugar reading within seconds after the process.
You can only use a test strip once. That means you’ll need to pull out a fresh one each time you check your blood sugar.
Your doctor will advise how frequently you need to check your blood sugar with this test strip. If you have type 1 diabetes, you may need it up to ten times each day. If you have type 2 diabetes, it might only need to be done twice a day.
At-Home Diabetes Test
Blood sugar tests are one of the easiest ways to monitor your glucose. Here are some reminders your need to know when performing at-home diabetes test:
- The fingers offer the most accurate results. However, several tests also allow you to prick your thigh or arm. This should be checked with your doctor before the test.
- If you don’t take insulin for medication, ask your doctor if and how often you should test yourself.
- Consider testing before and after meals to determine how your diet impacts blood glucose levels.
- A blood glucose chart is necessary for keeping track of your results. Having this data at your disposal can make it easier to spot patterns and potential health issues you may have in the future.
If you suspect you may have diabetes, avoid self-diagnosis and self-medication. It is important to remember that diabetes cannot be diagnosed solely using blood testing tools. These tools can only monitor your sugar levels and cannot precisely tell if you have diabetes. It is advisable to see your doctor for proper diagnosis and diabetes testing.