Why Do Diabetics Test Their Blood Sugar?

When there is not enough insulin in the body, blood glucose (sugar) will get high. Long periods of high sugars can cause ketoacidosis. On the other hand, too much insulin in the body can cause the blood glucose to get too low. When the blood sugar is too low the body can't function right. If it gets extremely low it can cause unconsciousness or even seizures. Testing blood sugars frequently helps the diabetic to keep a close eye on things so that they can correct any problems before it gets out of control. Depending on the doctor, most diabetics like to keep their blood sugars around 80mg to 150mg. Younger diabetics usually will have a higher target ( possibly 80mg - 200mg) because they can get low very quickly and do not understand how they are feeling yet.

Several times a day I have to test my blood sugar level. There are several steps to testing a blood sugar and correcting blood sugars:

Take out the glucometer.
Put a test strip in the glucometer.
Get the poker ready.
Poke your finger or your arm to get a blood sample to test.
Put your finger or arm to the test strip to see what your blood sugar is.
Let the glucometer count down.
After its done counting down see what your blood sugar is.
If it's high or low correct it.

Making Corrections:

The steps to give yourself insulin on a pump:

Press the activate (act) button.
Go to bolus and then press activate (act) again.
Go to set bolus then press activate (act) again.
Dial the amount of insulin you need then press activate again.
Wait for it to finish giving you the insulin you dialed in.