What is the normal range for a finger stick?

ISO guideline 15197 suggests that for glucose levels <75 mg/dl, a meter should read within 15 mg/dl of the reference sample, and for levels ≥75 mg/dl, the reading should be within 20%. A meter also should be able to meet these targets in at least 95% of the samples tested (1).

What is a good finger stick blood sugar?

Doctor’s Response. One important goal of diabetes treatment is to keep the blood glucose levels near the normal range of 70 to 120 mg/dl before meals and under 140 mg/dl at two hours after eating. Home blood sugar (glucose) testing is an important part of controlling blood sugar.

Does a lancet hurt?

Each lancet starts out nice and sharp. But if you use the same one repeatedly for your diabetes blood sugar testing, as many people try to do, it can become dull. This doesn’t bother everyone, but it could be contributing to your finger-pricking pain.

How accurate is finger stick blood sugar?

Check your blood sugar level with your meter at the same time that blood is drawn for lab tests, being sure to use a fingerstick sample, not blood from the blood draw. Then compare your meter’s reading with the lab results. Results that are within 15% of the lab reading are considered accurate.

What is an alarming blood sugar level?

In general, a blood sugar reading of more than 180 mg/dL or any reading above your target range is too high. A blood sugar reading of 300 mg/dL or more can be dangerous. If you have 2 readings in a row of 300 or more, call your doctor.

What does pricking your finger do?

Finger prick: A procedure in which a finger is pricked with a lancet to obtain a small quantity of capillary blood for testing. Also called a finger stick.

Where do you put a lancet on your finger?

Using a sterile lancet, make a skin puncture just off the center of the finger pad. Wipe away the first drop of blood (which tends to contain excess tissue fluid). pressure to the surrounding tissue until another drop of blood appears.

Why is it important to wipe away the first drop of blood?

Some facilities test the first drop of blood. Others require nursing personnel to wipe away the first drop of blood with gauze, and test the second drop. The rationale for wiping away the first drop of blood is that the alcohol in the prep pad, and consequently on the fingertip, may alter values.

Why do I get different blood sugar readings on different fingers?

Contamination of the fingers is a common culprit in blood sugar reading variability. That’s because it only takes a little bit of food residue on your hands to impact blood glucose levels. For example, just touching a banana or cutting a piece of fruit can send your numbers sky high.

What drink lowers blood sugar?

When participants in the study drank one cup of chamomile tea after meals three times per day for six weeks, they showed a reduction in blood sugar levels, insulin, and insulin resistance.