Something that bears the brunt of many jokes in the diabetes community is the test strip. If you haven't a clue what that is. No worries, I'll explain. The test strip is a very small yet essential item for anyone living with diabetes. In order to keep blood glucose levels in check you have to take regular measurements with a blood sugar measuring device called a glucometer. Even if I wear a CGM (continuous blood glucose monitor) which measures blood sugar through an implanted device, I still need to calibrate my CGM or double check that the reading I'm getting is accurate. Especially in an emergency. Nothing worse than getting a false reading on my CGM and treating it with either insulin or glucose and then having either a low or high. Sound complicated? Not even the half of it.
The humble test strip
The humble test strip
The humble test strip
Something that bears the brunt of many jokes in the diabetes community is the test strip. If you haven't a clue what that is. No worries, I'll explain. The test strip is a very small yet essential item for anyone living with diabetes. In order to keep blood glucose levels in check you have to take regular measurements with a blood sugar measuring device called a glucometer. Even if I wear a CGM (continuous blood glucose monitor) which measures blood sugar through an implanted device, I still need to calibrate my CGM or double check that the reading I'm getting is accurate. Especially in an emergency. Nothing worse than getting a false reading on my CGM and treating it with either insulin or glucose and then having either a low or high. Sound complicated? Not even the half of it.