A Comprehensive Guide To Glucose Monitors & Test Strips

Posted on August 15, 2022 at 06PM

Traditionally, people check their blood sugar levels using a blood glucose meter, lancet, and test strips. These digital kits and portable devices provide an on-the-spot reading of blood sugar levels, assisting you in managing your range. Based on your diabetes management plan, you may need various supplies like test strips, a sensor, and a blood pressure monitor. Keep reading as we explore what diabetic items like test strips, blood glucose meters, and sensors are, how they work, how to get them, and how they vary in price to help you find the best kit for your needs. 

GLUCOSE SENSORS

They’re biosensors uniquely made to detect sugar levels, which are vital for managing diabetes and other diseases. So, how does this technology work?

Whether in the form of a sensor for a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) or a test strip for blood glucose monitors, the detection and measurement of glucose levels follow similar processes. Using a lancing device to prick the skin allows blood to be collected and analyzed for data and results on glucose. Different accessories like Contour devices offer enhanced tracking, making diabetes management more effective.

How Do They Work?

All glucose testing tools—including wearable sensors and glucose meter test strips—are called glucose biosensors. These compact devices consist of several vital components for detecting and accurately measuring glucose.

The NCBI highlights an exhaustive explanation of the critical parts of a biosensor.

A glucose biosensor utilizes the following components:

  • Analyte: This substance comprises chemical constituents that are being examined and measured. The device is made to detect glucose, which is the analyte.
  • Bioreceptor: It’s a molecule that recognizes the specific analyte. When it comes to glucose detection, specific enzymes and proteins that promote a chemical reaction are applied. For instance, the test strip used for a blood glucose test consists of an enzyme that primarily interacts with the analyte inside the blood.
  • Transducer: The biosensor includes a fundamental component that converts the bioreceptor’s recognition into a measurable signal, typically electrical. While older glucose meters used a colorimetric process measured optically, most modern continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and glucose meters rely on electrical signals.
  • Electronics & display: They usually process the transduced signal and then prepare it for display. Next, the processed signals are quantified and displayed on either the glucose meter or the receiver for a CGM (or compatible app).

DIFFERENT TYPES OF GLUCOSE SENSORS

As previously stated, you can get glucose sensors either in a discrete form (diabetic meter test strips) or a wearable form (a CGM). The form factors may look different to the user, but both types of glucose sensors apply the same detection methods. For instance, a glucose oxidase biosensor might be a wearable CGM sensor or a test strip.

Multiple receptors can be applied to create the chemical reaction that enables the detection of glucose within a bodily fluid. The most popular type of glucose sensor is enzyme-based. The glucose sensor’s enzyme coating enables it to react with the analyte and create a secondary species that can be measured electrochemically.

Here’s a detailed look at each type:

Blood Glucose Sensors

Blood glucose meters are among the oldest and most popular ways of testing glucose. As mentioned earlier, these devices use enzyme-coated test strips containing a precise number of enzymes designed to only react to a single blood sample. Therefore, the test strips are intended for single use and cannot be reused. Once inserted into the glucose meter and receiving a blood sample, the diabetic test strip sends information to the glucose meter. The meter then calculates the amount of glucose inside the blood and eventually displays the outcome on the meter’s screen.

Test strips and blood glucose meters are typically more budget-friendly than continuous glucose monitoring devices. Additionally, meters provide more discreet testing as they do not have to be worn on the body.

Continuous Glucose Sensors

A CGM typically utilizes a filament coated inside glucose-sensing enzymes to help detect glucose in the fluid between your cells (interstitial fluid). A CGM automatically detects and measures blood glucose levels throughout the day.

You can even use a CGM sensor continuously for a few days or weeks — the actual duration will depend on the manufacturer. It’s also worth noting that implantable CGM sensors provide months-long wear because they’re embedded underneath the skin in a giant capsule than the thinner filament in other sensors.

Next, the sensor works with a transmitter above the skin to relay information to a smart device or receiver. The transmitter enables you to view your present glucose level and trends wirelessly. The system can notify you when it is time to replace the sensor.

Although the price of a CGM device will differ by brand, it’s often costlier than using a test strip. The CGM demands the constant replacement of more expensive sensors and transmitters.

Where & How Are CGM Sensors Inserted?

You may be wondering about the process of using a CGM sensor. The device is inserted beneath your skin using a needle. You could also opt for needle-free options to minimize complications and reduce pain from insertion.

Although the recommended spots for insertion often include the back of the arm or abdomen, the CGM manufacturer will give you exact recommendations/ specifications on where their product can be placed. An adhesive patch also holds the glucose sensor to your skin to ensure that the sensor stays in place.

The most common example of CGM is Dexcom G7. So, what does it entail?

For starters, it’s the latest version of Dexcom’s CGM. This system has obtained a CE mark, enabling Dexcom to sell this device to patients with diabetes in Europe, and it has yet to be approved for sale in North American markets.

The following are the new key features of the G7®:

  • 60% smaller and round. Its new design enables it to be inserted on the abdomen, back of the upper arm, or upper buttocks (for kids ages 2-17). You can also insert it with only one hand.
  • It enhanced alert settings for improved discretion.
  • 30-minute sensor warm-up.

How to Decide Whether a CGM Is Right for You

Let’s face it: deciding which system you’ll use entirely depends on you. You may need to consider several things, like

  • Sensor size
  • cost
  • Life of a sensor
  • Whether can you share your data?
  • Number of times you need to calibrate the system

Interpreting Blood Sugar Readings

Blood sugar levels are essential to body health, particularly for those with diabetes or prediabetes. If you comprehend these readings, you can make better decisions regarding nutrition, exercise, and general way of life.

Comprehending Blood Sugar Measurements

Milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) are used to test blood sugar levels. The American Diabetes Association provides the following recommendations for interpreting blood sugar readings:

Typical Range

Not eating for at least eight hours is known as fasting. Postprandial (two hours after eating): 70–99 mg/dL Under 140 mg/dL

Prediabetes

  • Level of fasting: 100–125 mg/dL
  • After meals: 140–199 mg/dL

Diabetes

  • Fasting: at least 126 mg/dL
  • Postprandial: at least 200 mg/dL

Elements That Impact Blood Sugar Levels

Your blood sugar measurements can be influenced by several things, including:

  • Diet: Your blood sugar is greatly influenced by the foods you eat. Blood glucose levels can quickly rise in response to carbohydrates, straightforward sugars.
  • Physical Activity: Regular exercise helps reduce blood sugar levels by improving insulin sensitivity and encouraging muscle cell glucose uptake.
  • Drugs: Insulin and oral hypoglycemia are two examples of drugs that can help people with diabetes control their blood sugar levels. It’s critical to adhere to your healthcare practitioner’s dosage and time recommendations.
  • Stress hormones can raise blood sugar levels. Learning stress-reduction methods like yoga, mindfulness, or deep breathing exercises can lessen this effect.
  • Sleep: Poor sleep or sleep disorders may adversely affect blood sugar regulation, resulting in elevated readings.
  • Illness: The body’s reaction to stress, infections, and other illnesses can raise blood sugar levels.

How to Track and Evaluate Your Readings

  • Maintain a Record: You can see trends by keeping track of your blood sugar levels and making notes about your food intake, exercise, and emotional state.
  • Recognize Your Goals: Based on your health objectives, work with your healthcare physician to determine your target blood sugar levels.
  • React Properly: If your readings are above your desired range, assess your recent dietary and exercise habits. Consider changing your diet, exercising more, or talking to your doctor about changing your prescription.
  • Recognize variability: Throughout the day, blood sugar levels may change. Instead of concentrating on individual readings, it is imperative to search for trends.
  • Seek Advice from Medical Professionals: At regular check-ins, your doctor or a trained diabetes educator can offer tailored insights and recommendations based on your readings.

Advice on Sustaining Appropriate Blood Sugar Levels

  • Select Foods Low in Glycemic Index: Low glycemic index (GI) foods help normalize blood sugar levels by gradually releasing glucose into the bloodstream.
  • Keep Yourself Hydrated: Your kidneys can eliminate extra sugar through urine if you drink enough water.
  • Plan Your Meals: Eating at regular intervals and avoiding long pauses between meals can help maintain stable blood sugar levels.
  • Include Exercise: Try to get in at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity exercise, which should include both strength training and aerobic exercises.
  • Regularly Check Your Blood Sugar Levels: If you have diabetes, monitoring your blood sugar levels regularly will help you stay informed and manage your health.

Common Issues and Troubleshooting

Test strips and glucose monitors are vital resources for diabetes management, assisting people in monitoring their blood sugar levels. However, like other medical instruments, they may need help compromising accuracy and dependability. 

Typical Problems with Inaccurate Glucose Monitor Readings

Causes include incorrect calibration, human error, damaged or expired test strips, and environmental elements (such as extremely high or low temperatures).

Troubleshooting

  1. Ensure that your monitor’s calibration follows the manufacturer’s guidelines.
  2. Make use of test strips that have been adequately preserved.
  3. Clean the test strip port on the monitor clear of debris.
  4. To confirm accuracy, run a test with a control solution.

Errors on the Test Strip

Causes include

  1. Utilizing expired test strips.
  2. Putting them in the wrong place.
  3. Exposing them to moisture or extremely high or low temperatures.
  4. When troubleshooting, ensure the test strip is always inserted in the proper position as directed.
  5. Before using, check the expiration dates, and keep the strips somewhere dry and cool.
  6. To prevent contamination, handle test strips with dry, clean hands.

Low battery or Problems with Power

Causes: Mistakes may result from low or dead batteries.

Troubleshooting: 

  1. Change the batteries regularly, mainly if the monitor indicates they are low.
  2. Make sure the battery is inserted according to the device’s instructions.

Issues with the Display

Causes include battery problems, software bugs, and cracked screens.

Troubleshooting: 

  1. Examine the monitor for physical damage. You should consider replacing the device if the screen is cracked.
  2. As directed by the manufacturer, reset the display.
  3. For help, get in touch with customer service if issues continue.

Unreliable Outcomes

Causes include physiological variables (such as dehydration), pollution, and variations in blood sample size.

Troubleshooting: 

  1. Verify that the amount of blood you’re using matches the user manual.
  2. Blood from a location that might be contaminated or unsuitable for testing (such as alcohol swab residue) should not be used.
  3. Retest with a different test strip if the findings differ noticeably.

Typical Problems with Test Strips

Damage or Deterioration

Causes: Test strips can deteriorate when exposed to heat, moisture, or sunshine.

Fixing the issue:

  1. Keep test strips in their original container, securely closing the top.
  2. Strips, including vehicles or direct sunlight, should not be kept in hot or cold environments.

Unreliable Test Findings

Causes include problems with the meter, faulty strips, or user mistakes.

Troubleshooting: 

  1. Verify the calibration and settings of the meter again.
  2. To rule out faults, test with a fresh strip.
  3. Contact customer service if you frequently get invalid results.

Issues with Storage and Expiration

Causes include incorrect storage or using test strips after their expiration date.

Troubleshooting: 

  1. Always verify the expiration date before using the test strip container.
  2. To preserve strip integrity, store according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

General Advice for Efficient Use

  • Observe the manufacturer’s instructions: The user manual provides detailed instructions on how to use your glucose monitor and test strips.
  • Frequently Adjust Your Monitor’s Calibration: Your readings are guaranteed to be precise and trustworthy through calibration.
  • Maintain a Reading Log: By tracking your blood sugar levels, you can see trends and possible problems with your monitoring device.
  • Speak with Medical Professionals: For more assessment and assistance, talk to your healthcare physician about any problems you have regularly. 

MORE ABOUT TEST STRIPS

As you already know, you should insert your test strip into your blood glucose monitor. You add a blood drop to that strip to identify your blood sugar level.

Where Can You Get Test Strips?

You can either get them on prescription or buy them online or over the counter at a pharmacy.

Meters often take a single type of test strip, and you should know which strip your specific meter uses before purchasing. It is undoubtedly important to remember regarding your prescription for test strips. A narrow selection of meters might be available in your neighborhood, and they might only recommend strips for a particular type of meter.

If you have Type 2 and would like to get test strips, you may not be able to obtain them on prescription. You’ll only be able to obtain test strips on prescription if your nurse or doctor wants you to self-monitor.

How Do You Use a Test Strip?

You always start by putting the strip in your particular meter. Once you’ve pricked your finger, you’ll take that meter and hold your test strip against the blood. In short, this is how you’ll get your sugar levels from the meter.

What Is the Difference Between Continuous Glucose Monitor and Traditional Glucose Testing?

Glucometers are portable devices that primarily work on reading glucose levels on a blood sample placed on a test strip. You must discard test strips after a single use, and some meters have limited memory for storing glucose results, which can be downloadable to a computer.

On the other hand, a glucose sensor is a small electrode inserted beneath a patient’s skin (subcutaneous tissue) that constantly records glucose levels throughout the day. The patient usually wears the sensor for 3-7 days before discarding and replacing it. The system transmits glucose readings to a monitor, insulin pump, or smartphone, which displays the current values. You can also view trend reports and charts after downloading their information.

CGMs Are More Accurate

Let’s be honest: CGMs are generally more accurate than traditional glucose monitors, and the latter can be off by up to 20%. By receiving samples every 10 seconds, calculating an average of those readings every 5 minutes, and in head-to-head comparisons, Continuous Glucose Sensors enhance blood sugar control in diabetes patients compared to older models.

More importantly, the future of these devices is bright. Technical advancements, the application of more sophisticated algorithms, and the implementation of machine-learning methods will undoubtedly make CGMs more versatile and reliable.

How to Find Out Whether Test Strips and Glucose Monitors Are Accurate?

You already know all the factors that affect your test result, but you might wonder how you could ensure that your test strips and glucose monitor are accurate. It’s pretty simple! A standardized test solution often accompanies glucose monitors. You could test your glucometer’s accuracy by squeezing a droplet of this specific solution onto a test strip and then putting it into the monitor.

Remember, you’d go through a similar procedure with a blood sample. Once the device takes the reading, you can compare that reading with the actual amount specified on the solution bottle. And if the two numbers match, then it means your glucose monitor is working correctly. It would be best if you always used the test solution when you opened a new box of diabetic test strips to verify the accuracy and quality of the products.

Conclusion

CGMs are a highly effective tool to help manage diabetes and improve dietary and overall lifestyle decisions. Their use, usually in conjunction with test strips, offers patients a wealth of information that assists them in having a more active role in their care. CGMs indeed offer reliable results in many clinical scenarios.

Developments in software design and technological advances promise to make CGMs much more accurate and helpful in managing diabetes. Whether you have diabetes or other metabolic conditions, you should invest in a CGM or use a test strip to manage your condition.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How frequently should my glucose monitor be replaced?

Most glucose monitors are made to last for a few years, but they may need to be replaced if they exhibit many faults or irregular readings. If it’s time for a new monitor, check with your healthcare practitioner or the instructions from your device.

What variables can impact my glucose monitor’s accuracy?

Several variables affect accuracy, such as extremes in temperature, altitude, dehydration, expired test strips or improperly stored, and human error. Sticking to the device’s instructions, utilizing clean, dry hands, and observing storage rules.

How can I safely get rid of discarded lancets and test strips?

According to local disposal regulations, used test strips and lancets should be disposed of in a container that can withstand punctures, such as a sharp container. For biohazardous waste, several communities have designated disposal locations or protocols.

What should I do if my blood sugar appears abnormally high or low?

To assure accuracy, wash your hands after receiving an unexpected reading and recheck your blood sugar. See your doctor if the reading is still out of the ordinary, particularly if you suffer from high or low blood sugar symptoms, such as lightheadedness, sweat, or disorientation.

Can I check my blood sugar at other locations, such as my forearm?

Indeed, many monitors enable alternative site testing on regions like the forearm. However, especially after eating or during fast blood sugar fluctuations, blood sugar levels from these sites may not match fingertip measurements. Fingertip testing is usually advised for the most precise readings.

How much blood do I need, and why is the sample size important?

Each gadget has a different blood need. Using sufficient blood could result in a correct reading. To obtain the most accurate results, adhere to the guidelines provided by your monitor on the appropriate blood sample size.

Why is it necessary to calibrate my glucose monitor?

Calibration guarantees accurate readings from your monitor. While some monitors automatically calibrate, others require manual calibration with every new batch of test strips. Inaccurate blood sugar readings can result from improper calibration; consult the handbook for instructions.

How should my glucose monitor be cleaned?

  1. Use a gentle, dry cloth to wipe the outside of your monitor.
  2. For a more comprehensive cleaning, consult the user manual for your display.
  3. Avoid submerging the monitor in water or cleaning it with alcohol-based products, as these may cause harm.

How should my test strips and glucose monitor be stored?

Keep out of direct sunlight and extremely hot or cold weather. Test strips should be stored with the lid firmly closed in their original container. They should not be kept in restrooms, automobiles, or any other area where temperature and humidity changes frequently occur.

Can I use a different brand or model of test strips with my glucose monitor?

No, glucose monitors usually only work with test strips made explicitly for them. Readings may become erroneous if strips from a different brand or model are used. Always use the test strips recommended by the manufacturer for your specific monitor.

Understanding Test Strips and Glucose Monitors

Are you ready to take control of your diabetes management? Using glucose monitors and test strips is a straightforward yet vital method of monitoring your blood sugar levels. By helping you understand and confidently use these tools, we at More Cash for Test Strips aim to simplify and streamline your diabetes treatment. Monitoring your blood sugar levels can be empowering, as it allows you to make informed decisions that enhance your well-being.

Knowing the ins and outs of your glucose monitor and test strips can make a significant difference, regardless of how long you’ve managed your diabetes or how new you are to blood sugar tracking. Do you need advice on how to use or care for your device? Are you interested in resolving typical problems? We are available to assist you! Begin now, and let us help you on your path to a more balanced, healthy life with diabetes. Please contact us or speak with your healthcare practitioner if you have any questions about glucose monitoring or need further guidance on adequately managing diabetes.