Does anyone use a meter for testing ketones?

jfmp
jfmp Posts: 264 Member
edited November 18 in Social Groups
I'm not even sure if I'm asking that correctly as I am just looking into breath and blood meters. My pcp agrees that a low carb/high fat diet can help with my neurological disease. I'd like to get some type of accurate readings (not pee strips). Looking for info on which type is better as well as specific brands.

Replies

  • RalfLott
    RalfLott Posts: 5,036 Member
    The Precision Xtra is purported to be the most accurate of the home blood ketone meters. The meter itself is not very expensive ($17 at Costco) but the strips can be pricey ($4+ each in the US).

    Last time I checked, Canadian mail order companies had better retail prices.

    But if you're diabetic - and perhaps epileptic - your insurance might cover the meter and strips with a doctor's statement of need for a specific meter and strips needed per day/month. Worth checking on!

    I'm diabetic and have had a good experience with LibertyMedical.Com, which shuffled paperwork between my doctor & insurance and sent me 3 months' worth of strips within a few days.
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
    Here's one you can get free with purchase of strips
    http://www.novacares.com/de.php
  • RalfLott
    RalfLott Posts: 5,036 Member
    FYI, I noticed a higher error rate with the Nova blood ketone strips, though the sample size was only about 20 strips. (I haven't had any errors with the Precision Xtra strips so far.)
  • jfmp
    jfmp Posts: 264 Member
    Thank you, both! Just what I needed!
  • RalfLott
    RalfLott Posts: 5,036 Member
    jfmp wrote: »
    Thank you, both! Just what I needed!

    Are you familiar with the Charlie Foundation?
  • Just_Eric
    Just_Eric Posts: 233 Member
    Get your strips on Ebay if you can. I pay about $1.75 per for Precision Xtra strips. It's still steep, and since I'm no longer in the pre-diabetic range with my a1c I'm not even bothering to hit up my insurance about covering them. I test each Wednesday and Saturday. Soon I'll be confident enough about readings and dietary correlations that I'll likely stop testing regularly, but for now I'm cool with paying $3-4 a week for peace of mind.
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
    RalfLott wrote: »
    FYI, I noticed a higher error rate with the Nova blood ketone strips, though the sample size was only about 20 strips. (I haven't had any errors with the Precision Xtra strips so far.)

    When you say "error" do you mean it actually reads error?
    I've never seen that even once with mine. I've done 60 tests since I bought strips 3 times and am out.
  • RalfLott
    RalfLott Posts: 5,036 Member
    RalfLott wrote: »
    FYI, I noticed a higher error rate with the Nova blood ketone strips, though the sample size was only about 20 strips. (I haven't had any errors with the Precision Xtra strips so far.)

    When you say "error" do you mean it actually reads error?
    I've never seen that even once with mine. I've done 60 tests since I bought strips 3 times and am out.

    Yep. Strips wouldn't test (not just me speculating that the readings were wrong).
  • retirehappy
    retirehappy Posts: 4,757 Member
    edited April 2017
    RalfLott wrote: »
    FYI, I noticed a higher error rate with the Nova blood ketone strips, though the sample size was only about 20 strips. (I haven't had any errors with the Precision Xtra strips so far.)

    When you say "error" do you mean it actually reads error?
    I've never seen that even once with mine. I've done 60 tests since I bought strips 3 times and am out.

    Jimmy Moore's website discusses the errors he and others get with that free meter, I thought about getting one, until I saw it discussed there, he says the best one is the Precision Xtra. In the end I got a cheap breathalyzer, but she will probably need to get a blood/keto meter. I just can't bring myself to stick any form of a needle into myself. I have fainted when having blood draws, needles and I don't belong together.
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
    I guess I got lucky or something because I've never seen that. That's why I was asking if it literally said the word error. I didn't know it had the ability. lol
    Well, it's worked perfectly for me for 3 boxes of ketone strips and 1 box of glucose strips.
  • RalfLott
    RalfLott Posts: 5,036 Member
    If my insurance axes testing supplies in its next round of cuts, I'll have to give Nova another try.
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