
Lancets & Lancing Devices For Diabetes: Read This Before You Buy
Lancets are small needles that are used to prick the skin to obtain a blood sample. Many lancets can be used with a lancing device that helps to make it more effective and less painful, however they can be used without one by just sticking the skin with the needle. Once a small blood sample is available, it can easily be put into a machine to run a test. As you can see from the image above, there are many different brands of lancets available.
There are a few tests that can be done using a small drop of blood that the lancet provides. For people with diabetes, they can easily check their blood sugar levels. Using a glucometer, which is the machine that tests the blood sugar, they can quickly find out if their sugar is at a good number or not.
How do the lancet and the lancing device work together
Although the lancet can be used alone to get a sample, it is much easier to use the lancing device along with it. The device provides a quick “punch” of the needle into the skin to make an effective and less painful stick. OneTouch, which is a popular brand of diabetic supplies, has a device that is easy to use. Each brand’s device will be a little different, but the general idea is the same. The following steps demonstrate how to use the OneTouch device.
Step 1. Always wash your hands before checking your blood sugar. If there is bacteria on your hands and it enters into your blood, it can cause a major infection! First, take the cap off of the device and insert a new lancet with the safety cap still on. (If it is removed first, you can poke yourself!) When you insert the la
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