Bayer Makes Diabetic Testing A Little Easier
Blood testing is never fun, and rarely easy. And checking for diabetes used to be fairly time consuming and difficult. But knowledge is power and make no mistake, the Bayer A1CNow® selfcheck is holding you accountable for your health. Anyone suffering from diabetes knows the importance of monitoring their blood sugar levels. The A1CNow® selfcheck allows you to keep tabs on your average blood glucose level for the past 2-3 months. Any changes in your level can indicate potential health risks or complications. According to Bayer, “just a 1% point reduction in your A1C may lower the risk of complications by up to 40%.”
The results are lab accurate and fast. You receive your results within 5 minutes and only a small blood sample is needed. To be clear though, this should be used in conjunction with your regular doctor visits in managing your diabetes. The importance of regular check-ups is also critical in knowing where how best to approach any possible problems. A plus of this device is that it is approved for FSA’s (flexible spending accounts) so check with your plan. You can purchase this device at your local drugstore or pharmacy.
A1CNow® selfcheck is equipped with a monitor, shaker pouch with lancet, blood collector and shaker, as well as a cartridge pouch with an extra lancet. Like many household products you should avoid direct sunlight and extreme temperatures, so store carefully.
I would recommend watching the instructional video, available in English on Spanish on their site, in addition to reading the instructional packet. You have to follow the process in an exact order and downfalls are making sure you don’t open packets too early, have an adequate blood sample, making sure blood collector is filled to the designated line, and making sure the blood collector is inserted properly into the shaker with cartridge inserted correctly. At $30 for a pair of kits, this is a pretty great advance for both those with diabetes, and those with the potential to develop it.
In conjunction with monitoring your blood levels, the Bayer Contour USB Blood Glucose Meter Kit allows you the luxury of reviewing and monitoring your blood glucose levels on your computer. This product features diabetes management software, that downloads to your computer (for free) and asks for some basic information like your name and birth date. You can analyze the data several ways, with customized reports like your averages before and after meals, target markers, and patterns in your testing trends. Color-coded information makes the data easier to read and interpret. To use this program you just insert your glucose test strips into the Bayer Contour USB meter and receive your results. You then plug the USB into your computer to upload your test results. Warning- PC users should be OK, though Windows 7 users might come across some issues, and Mac users should look elsewhere.
You can store up to 2,000 test results at any given time, and the device is easily portable (though perhaps too small and hard to read for some older users). This allows you to monitor trends in your results from a week to a month. We liked the option to set up automatic testing reminders to help schedule consistent monitoring appointments. This product is intended for someone who is computer savvy and can read basic charts, and is made for someone who consistently needs or wants to monitor their results for their own personal use or to share with a doctor in between appointments. Overall, the Bayer Contour can keep you on target but seems like it might be information overload unless you are truly trying to track your progress over time. At $75, and with 25 lancets in the box, it’s a decent bargain.
