Diabetic Products


When you have diabetes, your body either does not produce enough insulin or it cannot use the insulin it does produce as well as it should. This causes glucose to build up in your blood. Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose (sugar) for our body to use for energy. The pancreas, an organ that lies near the stomach, makes a hormone called insulin to help glucose enter the cells of our bodies.

If it is not treated, diabetes can result in serious complications, including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, loss of feeling to the hands and feet and lower extremity amputations. Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States.

Controlling Diabetes

You can take many steps to control your diabetes. First, you need to know your blood sugar numbers. Next, you need to reach your blood sugar goal by making healthy lifestyle choices. Finally, you need to keep your blood glucose under control by creating a plan to stick to your self-care goals and manage setbacks. All this should be done under the guidance of a health-care provider.

Supplies

You'll need a number of supplies to monitor and manage your diabetes:

Blood glucose monitors

A blood glucose monitor is a microcontroller handheld device that operates on batteries and measures blood glucose levels using current from bio-sensors. It runs on batteries. Size, speed and ease of operation are important factors in selecting a glucose meter, as is your lifestyle.

If you spend a lot of time on the go, you will want a meter that is portable and that gives fast results. Monitors today have features such as expanded memory, alarms, computer compatibility, ability to record insulin dose and other information. Several manufacturers now offer companion software programs that can log medication, exercise, food and more.

Most monitors on the market are reasonably accurate. Some meters offer alternate-site testing, allowing users to use blood from the arms or thighs, rather than the traditional finger stick. The penetration depth of lancets can also make a difference in comfort.

Test Strips

These are small strips you insert into the monitor after you have drawn a small bit of blood. The monitor then reads and analyzes the blood and will display what your blood glucose level is.

Lancing Devices and Lancets

These are devices with a sharp end that are used to penetrate the skin to draw a blood sample.

Hemoglobin A1c Tests

The A1c test is a laboratory test that measures your average blood glucose over the last three months. This test helps you see your overall blood glucose level over a period of time. At-home kits are available for this test, or a health care provider can do it.

Insulin Pumps

An insulin pump is made up of a pump reservoir filled with regular insulin. It has a small battery-operated pump and a computer chip that allows the user to control exactly how much insulin the pump delivers. It is all contained in a plastic case about the size of a beeper.

The pump reservoir delivers insulin to the body by a thin plastic tube called an "infusion set." Infusion sets come in 24 inch and 42 inch lengths and have a needle or soft cannula at the end through which the insulin passes. The needle or cannula is inserted under the skin, usually on the abdomen. The process of putting the insulin set in place is called "insertion," and is very much like giving a standard insulin injection. The infusion set is changed approximately every two to three days.

The pump is intended to be used continuously and delivers insulin 24-hours a day according to a programmed plan unique to each pump wearer. A small amount of insulin is given continually (the "basal rate”). This insulin keeps blood glucose in the desired range between meals and over night. When food is eaten, the user programs the pump to deliver a "bolus dose" of insulin, matched to the amount of food that will be consumed.

By Margaret Evans           


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