What to Do If You Have Ketones

You aren't going to believe this, but what is your "diabetes team."  My son sure could use one, and I have no idea of what that is.  thanks.  roseanne

I use the abbott precision meter to check my daughter for ketones and i cannot recommend it highly enough, it gives an exact figure for the level of ketone in the blood at that moment. Ketones in the body can take up to an hour to reach the urine so the reading you are getting is actually the level of ketones an hour previous. Also the exact figures leave little room for misinterpritation, although you can hardly misinterprite the word large! This meter also checks glucose levels, and does not need to be caliberated every time you change from one type of test strip to another, and you can check it anywhere even if your not close to a bathroom! Ketones are one of the most frightening parts of diabetes and a quick response is really essential. I really hope that when my daughter grows up she learns how to react as quickly and calmly as you did.

Hi Gina sorry to hear that your having such troubles! I too use the Precision Xtra to monitor ketones, and have sticks too. (but as the above comment says urine shows much later. Medisense has been very good at maintaining their meters and always replaced mine without any troubles but a couple of days shipping. also you can plot your readings on a sheet and see your trouble times when sugars are reacting wrong. tis helps a great deal for a full picture. Now ketones is a liver thing, and ketones only occur if your insulin has not been adequate in the past, also may occur due to alcohol the liver cannot do both at the same time and this is dangerous! I have been to both sides of the world and they say different things about ketones. I say (NOT A Medical ADVIsor) just a thought for you as a diabetic. Why did the ketones occur? forgot to give insulin, drank too much alcohol? wine is alcohol too although based on percentage. Or big difference here is adverse effect from insulin, such as skipped an item for sugar intake that was accounted for when injecting. Or worse yet a rebound effect from too much insulin in the body so called peeking at same time interval, hard to actually see but one could assume, this goes with the effect of too much exercise too and not feeling the drop! Any way my German Endo's said not do not give extra insulin give the correction only at meal time according to sugars and ketone level then. This made sense to me for when you give a correction soon after having eaten your insulin may double it's dose cuz there may be some within you at the time. Again I am not a doctor maybe a diabetic with too much experience, 30 years and still failing too maintain a "good" control. But older diabetes has more complications than they say too. Somethings for you too study for yourself and come to understand you bodies timing for insulin "peeks" when you yourself understands this you are able to anticipate things a bit better not falling too far from our guidelines given to use from "the team" Good night RAD

WHAT? You still don't have a Precision Xtra Meter and the ketone test strips?

Most of the reasons you listed for ketones were bad, and they can be. But it should be noted that ketones also represent ketosis, which is a harmless biochemical state in which your body is burning fat for fuel. Those on diets, especially low carb ones may have ketones in their urine.