Testing


Bayers CONTOUR® - the #1 pharmacist recommended meter in Canada†, CONTOUR® LINK, and BREEZE®2 meters are designed to help you take an active role in controlling your diabetes - that's what we call take-charge management. Testing your own blood glucose is a big part of take-charge management, but there are other tests that are important as well:

  • An A1C test done by your doctor, which looks at your average blood glucose level over the last two to three months.
  • Ketone testing when ill, to ensure your body isn't burning fat instead of glucose.
  • Blood pressure.
  • Blood fats, called lipids.

Many people think they can tell what their blood sugar is by how they feel. Some people can feel "high" when their blood sugar is low, and some can feel "low" when their blood sugar is normal or high. The only way to know for sure is to test your blood sugar. Testing also lets you see how "behaviour" affects blood sugar. How much did exercise lower your sugar level? How did over-eating change your blood sugar level? Use testing as a tool to learn more about you and your diabetes.

How do I know that testing is going to help me?

The most recent studies that have been done on diabetes show how much you can gain from tightly controlling your blood sugar:

Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT)

The DCCT is a clinical study conducted in the United States from 1983 to 1993 by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). The DCCT was a study of 1,441 people with type 1 diabetes. This study showed that take-charge management can lower the risk of complications from diabetes. People in this study who used take-charge management had average blood sugar levels near normal. They had a lower risk of eye disease, kidney disease and nerve damage. This study showed that even lowering your HbA1C by 1% can help lower your risk of future problems from diabetes.

The Kumamoto Study

The Kumamoto study, which was conducted in Japan, was for people with type 2 diabetes. This study had similar results to the DCCT. People with good control had fewer problems with their eyes, kidneys and nerve damage.

The United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS)

The UKPDS is the largest study of people with type 2 diabetes. Over 5,000 people took part in this study. The UKPDS showed that very good control of blood sugar lowers the risk of complications. Even small improvements in blood sugar control were shown to have big effects on the risk of complications. This study also showed that you might need to make changes to your treatment plan and medications over time. Control of high blood pressure and blood fats was shown to be helpful as well.