# Timings for testing



## belugalad (Jun 2, 2019)

I am only just starting testing,when I have my breakfast at about 6.30am straight after I have a 2 mile walk but I'm wondering now that when I test again for my 2 hours post meal testing that the exercise undertaken during that period will skew the results,how do I get around that,I thought I should exercise straight after food,or should I do a day were I miss the exercises to see what's happening with the food in terms of blood sugars,this situation will happen after each meal time as I exercise after each meal


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## Marmite (Mar 30, 2020)

I am new to all this but I did post a question similar to what you are implying   i.e.  when they take the blood test it may be at a good or bad time.    Presumably a BG meter would check,  but (a) why dosn't the Dr do this instead of a blood test   (b) I am reading the meters can be unreliable


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## Kaylz (Mar 30, 2020)

if your exercising after each time then I wouldn't worry about it but you may find that if you didn't do the same exercise then you'd see a bigger spike so you would then know if you weren't going to do the exercise it might be best not to have that breakfast that day etc (does that make sense? lol) @Marmite what your questioning is totally different to a post meal reading, the blood test a HCP takes is an average of the last 3 months not a current on the spot reading which belugalad would be performing, a Dr doesn't test via a BG meter because that isn't telling them how your control has been over the last 3 months which is what they are wanting to know, they don't really want to know what it is at the present time as that doesn't show what they are looking for, which meters can be unreliable? If your talking about a regular BG meter then they have parameters they have to be within that you can check with control solution, they are pretty accurate though or many of us insulin users may not be here to tell the story xx


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## grovesy (Mar 31, 2020)

Marmite said:


> I am new to all this but I did post a question similar to what you are implying   i.e.  when they take the blood test it may be at a good or bad time.    Presumably a BG meter would check,  but (a) why dosn't the Dr do this instead of a blood test   (b) I am reading the meters can be unreliable


If meters are not reliable why are Type1 given them and adjust their Insulin does according to the results. All meters on the market have to meet certain standards to be approved on the market.


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## silentsquirrel (Mar 31, 2020)

Marmite said:


> I am new to all this but I did post a question similar to what you are implying   i.e.  when they take the blood test it may be at a good or bad time.    Presumably a BG meter would check,  but (a) why dosn't the Dr do this instead of a blood test   (b) I am reading the meters can be unreliable


I think you are confusing reliability with accuracy!

The problem with BG meters is that they give a reading to 1 decimal place.  A reading of eg 5.8 suggests to most people that it is 5.8 rather than 5.7 or 5.9.   Sadly this is not the case.  Meters are supposed to be within 15% 95% of the time. (Someone will correct me if this is not the most up-to-date standard.)  So that 5.8 is somewhere between 4.9 and 6.7!

Try to think of readings as being 'ish'.

The 95% means up to 1 in 20 readings can be totally out withoutthe meter being outside the acceptable standard.  If you get a totally unexpected reading, wildly out, wash hands and retest.  A false high might be contamination on your hands, a false low is more likely to be a duff strip or an error in getting the blood on the strip correctly.


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## SB2015 (Mar 31, 2020)

belugalad said:


> I am only just starting testing,when I have my breakfast at about 6.30am straight after I have a 2 mile walk but I'm wondering now that when I test again for my 2 hours post meal testing that the exercise undertaken during that period will skew the results,how do I get around that,I thought I should exercise straight after food,or should I do a day were I miss the exercises to see what's happening with the food in terms of blood sugars,this situation will happen after each meal time as I exercise after each meal


Testing should help you to get a clearer picture of things.

Exercise after a meal helps to ‘use up’ some of the glucose that you have from the carbs you have just eaten.  As you are doing this each day, when you test afterwards it will be telling you how your body is coping with both the food and exercise.  So that testing sounds like it will be helpful.  I certainly find that breakfast is the easiest one to get sorted as I am consistent in what I eat and do in the removing s.  Not so easy the rest of the day.

You may well find that things are different at different times if the day.  So just work on things step by step.


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## SB2015 (Mar 31, 2020)

Marmite said:


> I am new to all this but I did post a question similar to what you are implying   i.e.  when they take the blood test it may be at a good or bad time.    Presumably a BG meter would check,  but (a) why dosn't the Dr do this instead of a blood test   (b) I am reading the meters can be unreliable


Hi Marmite
The test that is done at the surgery is a long term test and is measuring your average glucose levels over about three month. The HbA1c gives you a measure of how well you are doing over that time.

The blood glucose meters give a spot check in your current glucose level.  For T1s this, along with the amount of carbs eaten,  is used to determine their insulin dose before a meal.  They meters are reliable within a specified leeway, but it is a good enough ‘ish’ reading to enable us to make decisions about doses and diets.

For all of us these  values do indeed go up and down, depending on what we have eaten and what we have been doing.  That is why they are off little use to the GP/nurse as it depends on so many variables.  It is the average that is much more useful to them.

I hope that thatbhelps


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