Check with your Bloov insurance Monitorint or Medicare to see if the costs will be Diabetic nephropathy dialysis. This should Blood sugar monitoring ssugar a problem if you moitoring use the same site. If this happens, you may experience a severe hypo and need emergency treatment. The people who benefit the most from a CGM are those who use it every day or nearly every day. If you have diabetes, you may need to do blood sugar testing at home every day to help manage your blood glucose levels. Find the device that can make your life easier. Glucose is a type of sugar.

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Your range may be different if you have other health conditions or if your blood sugar is often low or high. Make sure to get an A1C test at least twice a year.

A1C results tell you your average blood sugar level over 3 months. A1C results may be different in people with hemoglobin problems such as sickle cell anemia.

Work with your doctor to decide the best A1C goal for you. If after taking this test your results are too high or too low, your diabetes care plan may need to be adjusted. When visiting your doctor, you might keep these questions in mind to ask during your appointment.

If you have other questions about your numbers or your ability to manage your diabetes, make sure to work closely with your doctor or health care team. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to search.

Español Other Languages. Monitoring Your Blood Sugar. Español Spanish Print. Minus Related Pages. Make Friends With Your Numbers. Getting an A1C Test Make sure to get an A1C test at least twice a year.

Your A1C result will be reported in two ways: A1C as a percentage. Estimated average glucose eAG , in the same kind of numbers as your day-to-day blood sugar readings. Questions To Ask Your Doctor When visiting your doctor, you might keep these questions in mind to ask during your appointment.

Most CGM systems permit real-time "sharing" of your CGM readings with others eg, family members or caregivers. Some, but not all, of these intermittently scanning CGM devices are able to alert you of low or high glucose readings.

You can download glucose results from the CGM system to your computer, tablet, or smartphone, allowing you to see glucose trends over time.

If you take insulin, your health care provider can help you figure out how to use this information to adjust your insulin dose if needed. Drawbacks — CGM systems may show lower glucose values than blood glucose meters, especially when blood glucose levels are rapidly rising. In addition, the costs associated with CGM are greater than those of traditional glucose meters.

Not all continuous glucose meters and supplies are covered by commercial health insurance companies.

Glucose testing — The results of glucose testing with blood glucose monitoring BGM or continuous glucose monitoring CGM tell you how well your diabetes treatments are working. Glucose results can be affected by different things, including your level of physical activity, what you eat, stress, and medications including insulin, non-insulin injectable medications, and oral diabetes medications.

To fully understand what your glucose levels mean, it is important to consider all of these factors. When keeping track of your results, you should include the time and date, glucose result, and the medication and dose you are taking.

Additional notes about what you ate, whether you exercised, and any difficulties with illness or stress can also be helpful but are not generally required every day.

You should review this information regularly with your health care provider to understand what your results mean and whether you need to make any changes to better manage your glucose levels. Need for urine testing — If you have type 1 diabetes, your health care provider will talk to you about checking your urine for ketones.

Ketones are acids that are formed when the body does not have enough insulin to get glucose into the cells, causing the body to break down fat for energy. Ketones can also develop during illness, if an inadequate amount of glucose is available due to skipped meals or vomiting.

Ketoacidosis is a condition that occurs when high levels of ketones are present in the body; it can lead to serious complications such as diabetic coma.

Urine ketone testing is done with a dipstick, available in pharmacies without a prescription. If you have moderate to large ketones, you should call your health care provider immediately to determine the best treatment.

You may need to take an additional dose of insulin, or your provider may instruct you to go to the nearest emergency room. Meters that measure ketone levels in the blood are also available, but due to their cost, urine testing is more widely used.

ADJUSTING TREATMENT. Checking your glucose either with blood glucose monitoring [BGM] or continuous glucose monitoring [CGM] provides useful information and is an important part of managing your diabetes. If you use insulin, your glucose results will help guide you in choosing the appropriate doses from meal to meal.

When you first start treatment for diabetes, you will need to work with your health care provider as you learn to make adjustments in treatment.

However, with time and experience, most people learn how to make many of these adjustments on their own.

Your health care provider is the best source of information for questions and concerns related to your medical problem. This article will be updated as needed on our website www.

Related topics for patients, as well as selected articles written for health care professionals, are also available. Some of the most relevant are listed below. Patient level information — UpToDate offers two types of patient education materials.

The Basics — The Basics patient education pieces answer the four or five key questions a patient might have about a given condition. These articles are best for patients who want a general overview and who prefer short, easy-to-read materials.

Patient education: Type 2 diabetes The Basics Patient education: Using insulin The Basics Patient education: Treatment for type 2 diabetes The Basics Patient education: Low blood sugar in people with diabetes The Basics Patient education: Care during pregnancy for people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes The Basics Patient education: My child has diabetes: How will we manage?

The Basics Patient education: Managing blood sugar in children with diabetes The Basics Patient education: Managing diabetes in school The Basics Patient education: Hemoglobin A1C tests The Basics Patient education: Giving your child insulin The Basics Patient education: Checking your child's blood sugar level The Basics Patient education: Diabetic ketoacidosis The Basics Patient education: Hyperosmolar hyperglycemic state The Basics Patient education: Diabetes and infections The Basics.

Beyond the Basics — Beyond the Basics patient education pieces are longer, more sophisticated, and more detailed. These articles are best for patients who want in-depth information and are comfortable with some medical jargon. Patient education: Type 1 diabetes: Overview Beyond the Basics Patient education: Care during pregnancy for patients with type 1 or 2 diabetes Beyond the Basics Patient education: Type 2 diabetes: Overview Beyond the Basics.

Professional level information — Professional level articles are designed to keep doctors and other health professionals up-to-date on the latest medical findings. These articles are thorough, long, and complex, and they contain multiple references to the research on which they are based.

Professional level articles are best for people who are comfortable with a lot of medical terminology and who want to read the same materials their doctors are reading. Glucose monitoring in the ambulatory management of nonpregnant adults with diabetes mellitus Measurements of chronic glycemia in diabetes mellitus Overview of the management of type 1 diabetes mellitus in children and adolescents Treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus in the older patient.

org , available in English and Spanish. Why UpToDate? Product Editorial Subscription Options Subscribe Sign in. Learn how UpToDate can help you. Select the option that best describes you.

View Topic. Font Size Small Normal Large. Patient education: Glucose monitoring in diabetes Beyond the Basics. Formulary drug information for this topic. No drug references linked in this topic. Find in topic Formulary Print Share.

Author: Ruth S Weinstock, MD, PhD Section Editor: David M Nathan, MD Deputy Editor: Katya Rubinow, MD Contributor Disclosures.

All topics are updated as new evidence becomes available and our peer review process is complete. Literature review current through: Jan This topic last updated: Apr 06, When you finish the blood glucose check, write down your results and note what factors may have affected them, such as food, activity, and stress.

Take a close look at your blood glucose record to see if your level is too high or too low several days in a row at about the same time. If the same thing keeps happening, it might be time to change your diabetes care plan.

Work with your doctor or diabetes educator to learn what your results mean for you. It can take time to make adjustments and get things just right.

And do ask your doctor if you should report results out of a certain range right away by phone. Keep in mind that blood glucose results often trigger strong feelings.

Blood glucose numbers can leave you upset, confused, frustrated, angry, or down. It's easy to use the numbers to judge yourself. Remind yourself that tracking your blood glucose level is simply a way to know how well your diabetes care plan is working, and whether that plan may need to change.

Checking urine for ketones is important when your blood glucose levels are high or when you are sick. Talk to your doctor to find out if or when you should check for ketones. Breadcrumb Home Life with Diabetes Get the Right Care for You The Big Picture: Checking Your Blood Glucose.

Who should check? People who may benefit from checking blood glucose regularly include those: taking insulin.

Contributor Disclosures. Please read the Disclaimer monitooring the end Blood sugar monitoring this page. GLUCOSE TESTING Fasting and cognitive function. If you moniitoring diabetes, you have an important role in your own medical care and monitoring your glucose sugar level is a key part of this. Although diabetes is a chronic condition, it can usually be managed with lifestyle changes, medication, and self-care measures.