The name of the device used to measure blood glucose is a glucometer, a small, easy-to-use device used to indicate the amount of sugar in the individual's blood at that very moment.
Having a device to measure blood glucose is very important for pre-diabetic and insulin-dependent diabetic individuals or not, to know how to identify the hypoglycemia that occurs when the amount of blood sugar is very low and also the hyperglycemia, when sugar it's too high.
Common glucometer
In the common glucometer, a drop of blood must be removed with the needle coming from a device similar to a pen, wet the glucose measuring strip in that drop of blood, insert the respective part in the reader and check the result appears on the screen immediately afterwards.
This type of glucometer can be purchased in pharmacies, drugstores, some supermarkets or in medical and hospital products stores and the price varies between 35 and 200 reais.
FreeStyle Libre
There is also another type of glucometer called FreeStyle Libre which is a small device that must be attached to the back of the arm, where it remains for 2 weeks, which is able to show the blood glucose value at that moment, without the need to take a drop of blood. The free style allows you to know your blood glucose by cell phone indicating the value at that exact moment, in the last 8 hours and also the trend of the next few moments.
FreeStyle Libre is able to check blood glucose continuously, pointing out when it is necessary to eat something or use insulin, preventing hypoglycemia to set in and the complications that diabetes can bring with excess blood sugar. In addition, with the cell phone properly registered, it is possible to know someone else's blood glucose, even at a distance because the system allows it.
The equipment is discreet and it is possible to bathe, go to the pool and go into the sea because it is resistant to water and sweat, and therefore does not need to be removed until it runs out of battery, after 14 days of continuous use.
FreeStyle Libre Price
The FreeStyle glucometer, brand Abbott, can be purchased at Onofre drugstores or over the Internet and costs approximately 400 reais and the sensors that need to be changed every month cost around 260 reais. Although it is a little more expensive equipment, it can compensate for the fact that it is not necessary to prick your finger in search of a drop of blood, which for some people it is necessary more than 10 times a day.
