Blood ketones tests are carried out by diabetic people and those who are on ketogenic diets. You may examine your blood or urine for ketones. However, since urine testing results aren’t the most accurate, the ADA (American Diabetes Association) recommends the blood ketone testing method instead.
If you are a diabetic, you must discuss at-home blood ketone examination process with your physician to confirm if such an approach is right for you and when you must be performing the tests. During illness, ketone testing is imperative.
At-Home Testing Blood Ketone Meters
To test ketone levels at home, you would require a testing kit that comprises the ketone test strips and the lancet pen, along with a blood ketone meter. The meter can also be used for reading blood glucose testing strips. The test results would be downloaded to your computer.
For ketone testing, you would need ketone test strips – glucose test strips cannot be used to test ketone levels. Also, the blood sample should be sourced from your fingertip and not any other part of the body. Strips could turn out expensive, particularly if your insurance doesn’t cover the costs.
When buying test strips, make sure you buy the right test strips; they should not be interchangeable. Make sure the strips aren’t expired – both at the time of buying and testing your blood. With expired strips, you cannot expect accurate results.
Also, strictly refrain from using used strips bought online. While used strips could be legal, you are at the risk of receiving an expired item or one that has not been stored properly.
Diabetes and Ketone Testing
Individuals with diabetes do ketone testing to look for ketoacidosis signs. If you are a diabetic, you must resort to ketone testing when you:
• are feeling sick
• your blood sugar numbers are more than 250
• are experiencing dehydration signs
Increased blood ketones could be indicative of your blood sugar dropping too low overnight. Studies state that monitoring blood ketones helps decrease hospitalizations and emergency room visits. Also, it improves recovery time in people with diabetic ketoacidosis.
Ketone Testing and Ketogenic Diets
If your blood glucose level is normal, your blood ketone levels could be at their peak in the morning. However, many people have also reported that their ketone levels went up as the day progressed. If you would like to keep a daily track of your blood ketones, picking a time of the day and sticking to it would provide you the ideal comparison. Certain factors besides your diet that could cause fluctuations are exercise and a healthy lifestyle overall. Also, eating high-carb foods would significantly bring down your ketone levels.
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