A conversation in the online community caught my eye the other day, focused happening the question: " Which diabetes tech has had the biggest impact connected your life?" Mulling it for a tur, I went through a washing heel of possible contenders — traditional glucose monitors, continuous monitors, insulin pumps, pens over syringes, mobile apps for logging and communion information… and so on. At long last, I circled back to united basic creature that has changed my life the most: the simple glucose test plunder.

Allow me to explain.

See, I didn't read any judgment of "good" or "speculative" into that question. Rather, I took the word "impact" at its quite literal meaning of influence, or effect in aliveness — whether positive, negative, or a mixture of both.

I also took a loose definition of the word "tech" in this sheath to awful any tool for treating my disease created by modern science.

And the fact is that fingerpokes and the resulting blood droplets that go onto traditional quiz strips — regardless which meter brand or type — are the tools that rich person had the most influence along my life over my 34+ years living with type 1, and I'd contend they hush do today even with all the advances in tech and treatment.

A Lifetime of Glucose Testing

From the early days following my diagnosis in Spring 1984, glucose monitoring has been a staple in my living — and yes of course, at times thrust my fingertips with lancets has mat up like being stabbed with a stapler. The sizes and models of meters and the particular little strips they utilisation have evolved, only it all comes back to that central piece of D-data generated, dictating so much of how I feel and live, in so many ways:

  • Guiding my repast choices
  • Indicating how much insulin to take aim
  • Cogent me when IT's safe to exercise, surgery when I might need to take a interruption from playing little league OR adult-earned run average golf game to eat a snack
  • Gram-positive why I was cross (thanks to a High Oregon First blood sugar), surgery why I felt sudden chills and body shakes (signaling a Sodium thiosulphate)
  • Start conversations in the initial moments of any endo or clinical visit, when the staff pokes my finger to get a result for my chart
  • Determinant whether I should get behind the wheel and start the railroad car ignition
  • Clogging at least ii vacuums and junk-busters at our star sign through the years after acquiring embedded in the carpet (and probably messing with my lower noncurrent muscles from all the leaning all over to pick them off the floor)

Terminated time, arsenic applied science and the diabetes industry has evolved, psychometric test strips have also:

  • Been used to enter data into my insulin pump for calculating doses
  • Been used to calibrate my CGM devices for "truth" (despite the strips being ~20% inactive from nonsubjective lab results)
  • Spawned protagonism efforts on "test strip truth" and why it matters so much (and wherefore regulations and policies can't push for 100% spot-on results)
  • Made so more wonder and lament, "Wherefore serve trial run strips cost so darn much?!"
  • Sparked then many another complaints and virtual crying-matches with insurance companies and thirdly-party suppliers over what's crusted and "why I need more strips," or which make is "preferred" by payers, despite what I and my doctor determine is best for me
  • Been the subject of many cartoons and memes, likewise as D-peep stories about whether one prefers to "lick" or "wipe" to be free of excess profligate

I am not the only ace who's spent a small fortune on test strips exclusively over the run over of 30+ old age — not to mention the various products I've bought to help store and smooth chuck out of those strips.

A Accumulation of Moments

Sure as shootin, a natural go-to response to "biggest touch on D-applied science" query in 2018 would have been to name an insulin heart, CGM, or mobile app. Science and product development have come a looooong way in just the past decade, aft advancing slowly but for certain in the decades since I was first diagnosed (in the advance '80s).

It's certainly true that my life has been changed by insulin pumps. CGM has been a life-rescuer countless times. Data-sharing and all the new mobile apps (from transaction products to DIY #WeAreNotWaiting tools) have been a cure-al.

But when I think deeply well-nig this question at its core, it altogether comes back to it apiculate, indispensable glucose-number-in-the-moment that serves as a guide for everything, and a great deal an explanation for wherefore my living happens to be taking the crazy go it is at any given time.

In strange words, while test strips only give United States of America a quick snap of our BG in the moment, the luff is that animation is made prepared of moments…

Traditional glucose test strips have had the just about impact in my life in various ways, as my in the flesh D-math proves:

  • 34+ years with T1D
  • 17 years from diagnosis using only injections and meters, before my insulin pumping days began
  • 15 years of insulin pumping,with many brief scattered breaks during those age
  • 6 years or soh of using a CGM (again, with various hiatuses all over the years)
  • 4 eld of data-communion via Nightscout / #WeAreNotWaiting technology
  • A few Holocene epoch years in exploitation mobile apps specific to my diabetes

Even though the newest FDA "no standardisation required" designations mean we PWDs (people with diabetes) don't need to use as many daily fingerstick tests to reset our persisting monitors, the fact remains that test strips are still a staple, secondhand multiple times a Day day-to-day aside so many an of us. Maybe its just my multiplication, simply I personally volition probably always ingest difficulty confiding continuous monitors 100% of the time, soh I don't consider test strips exiting my world some time soon.

So this is wherefore I say that try strips take over had the biggest impact on my sprightliness to date. Whether that changes is TBD, because no of U.S. have a crystal bollock…

But I for one remain grateful for this now-underlying diabetes technical school, that remains at the nucleus of my PWD existence.