Home diabetes tests are recommended for those over 40 (whites) or 25 (ethnic minorities) with risk factors, including being overweight, high blood pressure, or having a family history. Symptoms include regular infections, slow wound healing, and numbness in hands or feet. Testing is available at pharmacies and clinics, but a doctor should confirm any positive results. Two types of tests involve checking glucose levels in blood or urine, with blood testing being the preferred option. Testing should be done annually for those at risk and every three years for others over 45.
A home diabetes test is especially relevant for people in groups at high risk of developing the disease. It is about being over a certain age and having one or more risk factors. The age is 40 or older for whites and 25 or older for ethnic minorities. Risk factors include being overweight, having high blood pressure, having a stroke or heart attack, having serious mental health problems, or having a parent or sibling diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
You should also consider a home diabetes test if you have any particular symptoms. These include regular infections, wounds that take a long time to heal, urinating a lot, feeling tired or thirsty all the time, and experiencing numbness in your hands or feet. Whatever the results of your diabetes test, you should still see a doctor if any of these symptoms persist.
Remember that a home diabetes test is not your only option. Some pharmacies and clinics may offer free tests to people in particular risk groups. You may also be offered a test by your doctor after a checkup. If a home diabetes test indicates that you may have diabetes, you should still get tested by your doctor to make sure.
Because home diabetes testing is relatively inexpensive, you should be able to afford testing purely as a precaution rather than waiting until you have symptoms. One test manufacturer advises people in risk groups to get tested every year. He also says that everyone else age 45 and older should get tested every three years.
There are two main types of at-home diabetes tests. Both involve controlling glucose levels, as diabetes means your body doesn’t make insulin to bring these levels down. It’s important to remember that these tests do not diagnose diabetes; only a doctor can do that. Instead the tests can detect a sign of diabetes, namely glucose levels. This sign may be discovered before diabetes develops enough to cause symptoms.
The first type of test involves taking a small blood sample from a fingertip onto a special swab, then checking the color of the swab which will change depending on your glucose levels. The second type of test involves checking a urine sample. Unlike a pregnancy test, you take the sample in a small cup, then dip a test strip into it.
Blood testing is the best option for most people. It’s the option recommended by the American Diabetes Association and is probably a better indicator since someone with high blood glucose levels won’t necessarily have glucose in their urine. The urine test is also not suitable for women who are menstruating. A disadvantage of the blood test is that you must not eat for at least 12 hours before taking it, while the urine test can be done two hours after eating.
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