Checking blood sugar can give you valuable information about what foods are right for you. According to the American Diabetes Association, you should be shooting for 80 to 130 before a meal and less than 180 two hours after the first bite of a meal.
Ask your doctor what your target number should be. Checking your blood sugar can answer questions you have about diabetes. You can identify times when your blood sugar is high or too low. You can learn about the impact of certain food or meal has on your blood sugar, or what happens when you exercise. And the best way to answer these questions is by checking in pairs before and after something, like a meal or exercise.
Here’s how it works: Check before you eat and write the number down. Set a two hour timer and enjoy your meal. When the timer goes off, check again. You can compare the numbers you see on your meter to the targets your doctor has set for you.
Other pairs you could learn from are before and after exercise, or at bedtime and early in the morning to see what happens to your blood sugar overnight. Seeing the numbers can help you stay on course and make sure your medications are working. It can also alert you if something is changing with your diabetes.
Click here for a helpful worksheet that can make checking in pairs easier.
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