What is structured blood glucose monitoring?
Structured monitoring supports your routine or daily checking by giving you deeper, more targeted data to work from. It can help you determine if you're in a safe range and problem-solve around how the things you do are connected to your blood glucose levels.
You simply perform additional checks over a short period at specific times of day.
Structured monitoring tools can help you:
- Discover how to best use your numbers
- See how certain activities can affect your blood sugar levels
- Problem-solve around highs and lows
- Identify blood sugar patterns
- Work with your healthcare team to decide if any adjustments are needed to your insulin therapy or other areas of your diabetes management
There are different ways to perform structured checking, depending on your goals.
Pattern management
If you find that your HbA1c result is rising in spite of your best efforts, or if you don't feel as well as you'd like, view the Accu-Chek® 360° View tool. This simple paper tool helps you track your blood sugar over 3 days, so you and your Healthcare Professional can quickly identify patterns that can guide adjustments to your treatment plan. As a result, you may be able to feel better and lower your HbA1c1.
Before-and-after monitoring
You may also decide to try the Accu-Chek Testing in Pairs tool. This easy-to-use, printable tool helps you see changes in your blood glucose with before-and-after testing. In just 7 days, you can see the effect a specific meal, exercise or other event has on your blood glucose.
The mySugr®* app is also a handy tool for monitoring and managing your diabetes. This can be used to log your blood glucose readings, meals, insulin and more, allowing you to spot patterns. You can also download and share reports with your Healthcare Professional ahead of an appointment or for remote support.
Structured blood glucose monitoring can help you organise your numbers so that patterns pop out more easily. Then you can work with your healthcare team to make any needed adjustments in your self-care. Find more information about checking blood glucose.
* The mySugr Bolus Calculator is licensed for people with diabetes over the age of 18 years. The mySugr logbook is licensed for people with diabetes over the age of 16 years.
The views expressed in the Accu-Chek blog are not necessarily those of Roche Diabetes Care Limited. The content is provided for general information only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely – you must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content. Although we make reasonable efforts to ensure that the content is up to date, we make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content is accurate, complete or up-to-date.
Sources
1. Polonsky WH, et al. Structured self-monitoring of blood glucose significantly reduces A1C levels in poorly controlled, noninsulin-treated type 2 diabetes: results from the Structured Testing Program study. Diabetes Care. 2011;34(2):262-267.