Diabetes is a disease that prevents the body from making or using insulin well enough to prevent high blood glucose levels. The three types of diabetes -- type 1, type 2 and gestational -- can cause serious conditions and life-threatening...
You directly affect your glucose or sugar levels when you eat. As glucose is absorbed from the small intestine into the bloodstream, beta islet cells in the pancreas secrete a hormone called insulin. This hormone transports glucose into the...
OneTouch manufactures blood glucose meters for individual use in the home setting. By checking blood sugar frequently, diabetics are able to monitor their blood sugar trends related to eating, exercise and stress. OneTouch meters are simple to use...
High blood glucose, also known as hyperglycemia, occurs when your body has difficulty producing enough insulin or is not using insulin properly, according to the American Diabetes Association. If left untreated, it can develop into a condition...
Most people who track their blood glucose levels do so to manage their diabetes, a disease that prevents the body from making enough insulin or using insulin properly. Normally, sugar in your bloodstream is moved into your cells. In people with...
Patients with diabetes suffer from elevated blood sugar levels, either as a result of not producing enough insulin or from having the body not properly respond to insulin levels. Since elevated levels of blood glucose can cause a number of...
Most individuals without an underlying disease have very little reason to ever need to check their own blood sugar levels. Diabetics, however, need to do so regularly. Diabetes, explains Dr. Lauralee Sherwood in her book "Human Physiology," is a...
If you're diabetic, the most important part of your day should be monitoring your blood glucose. Unmanaged diabetes can lead to a number of other complications, including kidney failure, coronary artery disease, blindness and even loss of limbs....
The American Diabetes Association recommends self-monitoring of blood glucose levels for all people with diabetes, especially those who take medications, who are having trouble controlling their blood glucose levels or who are pregnant. Your...
For someone with diabetes, both excessively high and excessively low blood sugar can represent an emergency. Hyperglycemia, or high-blood sugar, is typically defined as blood sugar at or above 240 mg per deciliter. The symptoms of hyperglycemia...
Monitoring blood glucose levels throughout the day and at bedtime is an important tool for diabetics to manage their disease. MayoClinic.com explains that typically type 1 diabetics must check their blood glucose levels multiple times per day....
Diabetes is a condition in which blood glucose levels become too high when the pancreas doesn't produce insulin, or not enough to manage blood glucose levels. It can also occur if the body doesn't use insulin correctly and can't stabilize sugar in...
According to the American Diabetes Association's 2010 Standards of Care, checking blood glucose at home is an important component of effective diabetes therapy. Blood glucose numbers give important information about how well diet, medications and...
The American Diabetes Association has found that diabetics whose blood sugar levels are kept under tight control have fewer complications. Diabetes test strips enable diabetics to monitor their blood sugar levels at home. This allows patients to...
The simplest parts of a glucometer are the test strips, which are designed to pick up a consistent amount of blood and then to deliver it to the glucose meter. In general, using a glucometer involves putting one of these strips into the glucometer...
High blood sugar, also known as hyperglycemia, is cause for concern, according to the American Diabetes Association. Persistent hyperglycemia can affect your eyes, kidneys, nerves and heart. If left untreated, it can also lead to life-threatening...
When food is consumed, the body breaks it down into glucose, which is a source of energy for the body. Insulin is a hormone made in the pancreas that moves glucose from the bloodstream into the cells, where it is utilized. Diabetes is a disorder...
When you have diabetes, your body's mechanism for moving glucose from the blood and into the cells that need it is impaired. This can be due to either a reduction in the insulin you produce or a resistance to insulin. After you eat, your glucose...
Many people on insulin for the treatment of diabetes try to save money on supplies, as daily injections of insulin, blood glucose testing strips, the glucose monitor and needles and syringes can be quite costly. Reusing insulin needles isn't...
Knowing when to test blood glucose levels is an important part of keeping your diabetes stable. Most diabetics should test their blood glucose levels every morning before eating. People who are newly diagnosed diabetics should test their blood...
Monitoring blood glucose, also known as blood sugar, is an essential part of a diabetic's life. Some people living with diabetes do not create enough insulin to allow cells to use glucose. For others, insulin is present but cells are resistant to...
Daily testing of blood glucose levels is one of the most important ways for diabetics to manage their diabetes. It is best to keep your blood glucose levels as close to the normal or target range as possible. You can accomplish this through eating...
Glucose is the main sugar found in our blood and is an important source of energy. Blood glucose levels measure the amount of glucose in your blood at a given time. It is most often used as a way to determine whether or not you have diabetes. A...
The OneTouch UltraMini blood glucose meter is a tool that lets diabetics monitor their blood glucose at home. You should only use OneTouch UltraMini test strips with the OneTouch UltraMini--other test strips may produce unpredictable results, if...
Monitoring your glucose level may be the most important tool you have for controlling your diabetes. The food you eat, any medication you take, your stress level and the amount of energy you use exercising will all affect your blood sugar. Staying...
You need to take diabetes medication or insulin shots every day in order to help maintain a healthy blood glucose level, but you don't have health insurance. The medications, insulin, syringes and test strips are all expensive, and you don't know...
The Freestyle meter is a type of blood glucose monitor created by Abbott Laboratories. A glucose meter is an essential tool for diabetics to monitor their blood glucose levels. Monitoring glucose levels is vital to determine your appropriate...
Diabetes is a condition in which blood glucose levels are chronically elevated. One of the most dangerous complications of diabetes is a condition known as diabetic ketoacidosis, which is caused by the body being unable to use glucose as an energy...
Blood glucose, also known as blood sugar, should be between 70 mg/dL and 110 mg/dL when fasting for at least 8 hours, according to "Foundations of Nursing." Diabetics and people that suffer from hypoglycemia are encouraged to monitor their blood...
