Goal: To establish a habit of using your blood glucose meter daily until you have reversed your blood sugar numbers to non-diabetic normal.

  • Learn how to check your blood glucose in the most efficient and least painful way.

Ideally, you should check your blood glucose three (3) times a day. Of course, this may depend somewhat on how many test strips your doctor prescribes and how many your insurance will cover. I have been fortunate that (so far) my insurance covers 100 test strips per month (3 per day) with $0 co-pay. If you doctor/insurance will not cover your test strips (or will not cover as many as you’d like to have), you can purchase meters and test strips without a prescription. Many Adventist Vegetarian Diabetics group members have found the most cost-effective to be the ReliOn brand from Walmart.

Be sure to record your blood glucose (in mg/dL or mmol/l) every time you test. If you are taking diabetes medications and/or insulin, write down the times and amounts taken. Here are the times for testing that my doctor recommended:

  • Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG)
  • Bedtime
  • Your choice: pre-meal or post-meal (60, 90, or 120 minutes after the first bite) – test at different times on different days
  • Record your average blood glucose for that day

At the end of the week, if your average daily blood glucose is 100 mg/dL (5.1 mmol/l) or more, continue to test every day. If less than 100 mg/dL (5.1 mmol/l), test once or twice a week.

Reference: https://adventistvegetariandiabetics.wordpress.com/diabetes-basics/articles-about-blood-glucose/

Blood Glucose Monitoring: Tips to Monitor Your Blood Sugar Successfully
Monitoring your blood glucose level yourself is fairly straightforward and easy to do. Though the idea of taking a sample of your own blood each day makes some people squeamish, the modern spring-loaded lancet monitors make the process nearly painless. Logging your blood glucose levels can be part of a healthy diabetes maintenance or dietary routine.
https://www.healthline.com/health/type-2-diabetes/blood-glucose-monitoring#overview1

OneTouch® Delica® lancing device
Lancets available in two sizes: 30 Gauge Fine and 33 Gauge Extra Fine
https://www.onetouch.com/products/accessories/onetouch-delica-lancing-device

For more details about checking your blood glucose and using your glucometer, refer to Diabetes Testing Supplies.

Tips on using your blood glucose meter most effectively: HOW TO USE YOUR BLOOD GLUCOSE METER.

Activities for the next three (3) weeks were inspired by the “21-day Jumpstart Challenge” from Smart Diabetes Solutions, which no longer facilitates these three one-week challenges. But the concepts are extremely valid and are in alignment with the first three of The 8 Laws of Health: Water, Exercise, and Nutrition.