Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
a1c at-home test kit, March 1, 2008
I received the product very quickly however it took over two full weeks for me to receive test results after I sent in the test sample. I mailed the kit in on 2/5 they tested it on 2/13 and I received the results back on 2/23. That is 19 days. I figured 8-10 days but not 19!
That is too long. I suppose if you are not in a hurry the slow turn around eventually will get you the information you need.
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0 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
I HAVE NOT USED THIS PRODUCT, BUT...., August 8, 2009
I have not used this product but I was ready to buy this product and any other like it that was a good product, good customer/patient service and behaved in a professional manner; afterall, this is my health I'm trying to take care of.
Well, when I found out I have to send the results away that I take at home to a lab--that stop me from buying this kit. (I thought there would be an additional fee too.) When someone mentioned that it took 13 days for them to test the results and get the answer back in 19 days...well, that seems to me to be basically unscientific. (Old blood lying around for 13 days...in what condition?) I don't trust this methodology whatsoever especially at about $24 a whop.
I happen to have healthcare, one of the lucky Americans, thus far. I have been diagnosed with the onset of diabetes II. My numbers for the last 2 years have been between 5.9 and 6.2 but I know I cannot be assured of this. (By the way, I take no meds. I am obese. I don't move much anymore.) The point is: the home-tests are definitely not good science. I stuck myself at least two dozen times when I first got my meter just to discover that the meters are way off, from 10, 20, even 30% depending on (a) if you're upset, (b) if the blood is old, say 30 seconds or 1 minute, meaning air affects blood sample; (c) a lot of other factors. I stuck myself before meals, after meals, in-between meals and I just about learned what I wanted to learn: what to eat, in what combinations and then I could predict the numbers on the meter within say 10 points to 15 points. I also learned what I learned at Weight Watchers; the scales at the place I went to were not calibrated to affect "exactness" and the home office was not surprised. (I'm thinking it makes the people try harder or something.)
ALL IN ALL...go get yourself some little dishes, eat 6 meals a day including some form of dessert you like (all this eating will likely add up to one BIG meal but you don't eat it all at once) but (a) put it on little plates, and, (b) make sure you have some protein already in your belly when you do eat dessert and (c) stop binge eating; learn to manage emotions and don't eat to feel better because once you start eating in the right ways binge eating makes you feel really bad and bloated. They say the cure is "love yourself" and "share yourself" with others, meaning, lightening up on the emotional "wishful" thinking; talk to some parents--they can tell you the truth about love. (d)So, set out to RE-TRAIN yourself to new eating habits; when you start feeling better you will find yourself forgetting desserts, esp. since you don't have to do the "denial" thing: You have given yourself permission to have a dessert each day (don't save up; the point is to eat a little of everything. (e) Do your metering but be reminded it's maybe just a gauge; maybe the average number is a better indicator than the most recent number. I'm assuming that the meter "range" is a better indicator than one immediate number; (f) Watch the carbs, watch the carbs; that's why they say make your carbs veggies and fruit (on very small plates) instead of sugar. I eat HIGH FIBER cereal, which is carby...for breakfast. That means I've got to cut down on the carbs for the rest of the day.
I WON'T BUY THE AT-HOME TEST UNTIL I FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS WITH THAT ITTY-BITTY BLOOD SAMPLE I TAKE AT HOME...IN THROUGH THE MAIL AND INTO THE LAB. (My doctor orders a blood test every 90days for me and my health-care pays for it but I wanted another source to check the lab my doctor uses.) See, I'm thinking if the GREAT science lab comes back with a 6.1 and the at-home comes back with a 6.4 then I know I'm using something I can't trust again. I'm using something that isn't "great science" but it may work for me because I tend to react to that and become determined to move my score out of the red zone.
At any rate, I'm hoping to bring my numbers down (due to behavior modification) to 5.6; that's my goal. The at-home test was suppose to be the source to check my doctor's source, and affordably for me. I thought they had figured out a way to do science in my living room in a machine with a drop or two of my immediate blood sample.
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