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Since diabetes are heart diseases are tightly coupled it's prudent to monitor blood pressure everyday
Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
11–20 of 61 posts
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#12Earlier quoted context omitted.
I started out with a Dexcom but this insurance year they decided they weren't going to cover it because T2D doesn't have a benefit (allegedly). Maybe as a result of this study? I switched over to the Libre and I'm paying $85 out of pocket every month which is worth the ROI. The Dexcom is way more expensive.
Alas, the Dexcom is more accurate and has better calibration, but the Libre if far better covered by insurance options. Self-hackers have to pony up.
Where's the evidence of this statement? It's well known that blood glucose monitors get a wide latitude for accuracy from the FDA anyways so real accuracy would be very difficult to determine.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#13I know someone who works at a clinic that serves diabetics without health insurance who cannot afford routine glucose monitoring. A majority of the patients show up with A1C of 10 or higher, often much higher. If uncorrected, this is tragic. A finding that most people will not find a way to comply effectively with a plan to scientifically manage T2D is not, to me, a convincing reason to make scientific management les…
Yep. But the key issue is that patients need to be helped into diets that will be lower in carbs and provide more effective A1C control. I think the fact that you can see what happens to your glucose after every bite of food you take is a powerful incentive to improve your diet.
No meds are going to reduct A1C of 10 or higher to even moderately high levels of 8 or so without serious dietary changes.
I personally got my A1C down from 11 to 5.4 in 5 months with diet, exercise and meds but from my doctors own comments and my research the meds (Metformin and Victoza) really only contribute maybe 1.5 point reduction. If I have an A1C of 9.5 instead of 11 it's not going to make much difference. But at 5.4 I'm essentially normal.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#14Off-topic: but as someone who's not officially type 2 diabetic but would like to be proactive about measuring their sugar level (I've had my A1c at pre-diabetes levels in the past), what options do I have to secure a CGM?
I've asked my physician but he said he won't be able to prescribe one that's covered by insurance. The DEXCOM website doesn't have a clear MSRP for folks like me.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#15Off-topic: but as someone who's not officially type 2 diabetic but would like to be proactive about measuring their sugar level (I've had my A1c at pre-diabetes levels in the past), what options do I have to secure a CGM? I've asked my physician but he said he won't be able to prescribe one that's covered by insurance. The DEXCOM website doesn't have a clear MSRP for folks like me.
Ha I've been trying to find one for forever. Can't even find cheap non-fda approved clones from alibaba/aliexpress. Would love to hear if anyone has made some headwind on this. It seems odd that only diabetics are allowed access to the tools that enable CGM. Blood glucose is an important marker of health, diabetic or not.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#16The article says:
> Of course, there are exceptions. When patients are acutely ill, or changing regimens, or finding that their blood sugar is not well controlled, testing may be appropriate.
So about the regimens: unless the patient eats the same every week (same ingredients, same quantities) without any significant variation, it’s still the way to go IMHO. General guidelines can be followed by the patient but usually they don’t have that much nutrition knowledge to judge if a new food is going to hurt them (besides the most obvious sugary stuff). There are exceptions and all that.
I supported a member of my family who’s gone from pre-diabetic to dangerous levels of A1c (well beyond “need insulin”, more like “go to the ER right now”) and the regular pricking helped a lot to know what could still be eaten (full keto wasn’t an option).
And even this story has a happy end: no insulin and very minimal pre-diabetes medication. Regular pricking still happens when significant (usually healthy) changes in diet happen and it helped to detect what should be avoided. And luckily it’s affordable.
Disclaimer: not a doctor, just a nutrition freak.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#17Off-topic: but as someone who's not officially type 2 diabetic but would like to be proactive about measuring their sugar level (I've had my A1c at pre-diabetes levels in the past), what options do I have to secure a CGM? I've asked my physician but he said he won't be able to prescribe one that's covered by insurance. The DEXCOM website doesn't have a clear MSRP for folks like me.
Ha I've been trying to find one for forever. Can't even find cheap non-fda approved clones from alibaba/aliexpress. Would love to hear if anyone has made some headwind on this. It seems odd that only diabetics are allowed access to the tools that enable CGM. Blood glucose is an important marker of health, diabetic or not.
On the other hand, you can get a normal blood glucose monitor with 100 test strips for under 20$ there. I did this to control my keto diet, and just measured my fasted blood glucose levels in the morning.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#18Off-topic: but as someone who's not officially type 2 diabetic but would like to be proactive about measuring their sugar level (I've had my A1c at pre-diabetes levels in the past), what options do I have to secure a CGM? I've asked my physician but he said he won't be able to prescribe one that's covered by insurance. The DEXCOM website doesn't have a clear MSRP for folks like me.
What country is this? I just order freestyle libre online you don't need any doctors receipt for this.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#19Off-topic: but as someone who's not officially type 2 diabetic but would like to be proactive about measuring their sugar level (I've had my A1c at pre-diabetes levels in the past), what options do I have to secure a CGM? I've asked my physician but he said he won't be able to prescribe one that's covered by insurance. The DEXCOM website doesn't have a clear MSRP for folks like me.
What country is this? I just order freestyle libre online you don't need any doctors receipt for this.
Not an the option for US afaik.
Re: Routine glucose monitoring may be unnecessary for people with Type 2 diabetes
#20Earlier quoted context omitted.
Alas, the Dexcom is more accurate and has better calibration, but the Libre if far better covered by insurance options. Self-hackers have to pony up.
Where's the evidence of this statement? It's well known that blood glucose monitors get a wide latitude for accuracy from the FDA anyways so real accuracy would be very difficult to determine.
Anecdotally - I helped a T1 diabetic friend set up Loop using a Dexcom G5 and then a G6. Over the course of many months of use, the G6 has proved MUCH more reliable and accurate than the G5, which resulted in far better Looping. The Loop community as a group seem to confirm this increased accuracy.