What is the Best Way to Test Ketones in Breath, Blood or Urine?

What is the Best Way to Test Ketones in Breath, Blood or Urine? Every diabetic knows that ketones are not good. Doctors scare with ketoacidosis, and reference books advice measuring urine ketones after each hyperglycemia. Surely every house has a breath ketone meter, thrown into the far corner and safely forgotten. Ask yourself - do I measure ketones after every high sugar?

If your answer is no, you may just not understand why and what the consequences are. Let's take a look and remember how ketones affect the body, why ketoacidosis is dangerous, and what are the ways to measure ketones?

Types of Ketones

 There are two types of ketones:

1. hungry
2. diabetic

This is the same chemical compound, but the reason for the formation is different. Moreover, your further actions depend on these reasons.

Diabetic ketones release during insulin deficiency - when blood sugar rises from a lack of insulin for a meal, from a missed shot, or from a malfunctioning insulin pump.

What to do?  If you find ketones after high sugar, it is enough to put a joke - insulin blocks further production of ketones and reduces sugar. Traditionally, doctors also advise drinking plenty of water so that ketones that have had time to develop leave the body faster in the urine.

What is the Best Way to Test Ketones in Breath, Blood or Urine?

Hungry ketones release even in healthy people during prolonged fasting. The body has nowhere to take energy from, glucose does not supply with food. Furthermore, the body begins to break down fat stores and release ketones.

What to do?  The solution is simple - don't skip meals and snack before bed if hungry ketones show up in the morning.

Why are ketones dangerous?

• Ketones cause fatigue and irritability, even if you just rested
• In high concentrations, they cause nausea and even vomiting, abdominal pain
• Violate the work of the cardiovascular system - lower blood pressure and cause tachycardia.

Poor health with high blood sugar is the fault of ketones, and not high sugar as such. The higher the score, the worse you feel.

What is the Best Way to Test Ketones in Breath, Blood or Urine? Ketoacidosis is a critical condition in which the level of glucose and ketones in the blood greatly exceeds the norm (above 3.0 mmol / l). At the same time, high rates are very difficult to bring down. Behind the terrible word ketoacidosis are the following symptoms and consequences:

• Dehydration
• Vomit
• loss of consciousness
• Development of ketoacidotic coma (in very rare cases - death).

With ketoacidosis, you need to urgently consult a doctor! In this state, it will be very difficult for you to return to normal on your own. Intravenous drips need to replenish fluid in the body and the introduction of auxiliary drugs in addition to insulin.

In what situations should ketones be measured?

1. Sugar is low, but you feel bad
2. Blood sugar for more than 2-3 hours was kept at the level of 14 mmol/l and above
3. You have not eaten for a long time (longer than 5-6 hours)
4. During pregnancy (30% of the subjects found ketones in the morning urine)
5. Sugar is high, but you feel fine.

In the latter case, hyperglycemia can be due to dehydration. A ketone test will be negative, and an insulin boost to the current sugar level will cause hypoglycemia.

Drink water first and re-measure sugar after 20-30 minutes - most likely it will drop by a few units. After that, you can inject insulin without fear of "going hypo".

How to measure ketones?

 There are three ways to measure:

1. Breath
2. urine
3. Blood.

The definition of ketones in breath is familiar to many. It's fast, cheap and affordable. We advise you to always have ketone breath meter on hand. It can be KT001. This is the best method to test ketones in breath.

Urinalysis is less accurate

• Urinalysis is less accurate because medication, vitamin C, and even diet can effect it;
• Ketones release into the urine only 3-4 hours after they appear in the body;
• Ketones may be present in the urine up to 2 days after they have ceased for reproduction;
• It is impossible to determine exactly when ketones form.

What is the Best Way to Test Ketones in Urine?

Measurement method: dip the test strip with the indicator into the urine for a few seconds, wait 30-60 seconds (depending on the brand), compare the color of the indicator with the scale on the tube. The darker the indicator, the higher the concentration of ketones in the urine will be.

The determination of blood ketones is a relatively new method for home use. You will find a glucometer that can measure both glucose and blood ketones.

A blood test can detect high ketone levels without delay. In the blood, the level of betahydroxybutyrate, a ketone, is measured, which is produced precisely when the body loses the ability to absorb glucose. A urinalysis may not even show levels of this type of ketone.

You get accurate readings (up to 0.1 m/mol) that you can't get with urine strips.

What is the Best Way to Test Ketones in Blood?

Measurement method: insert a test strip into a glucometer, pierce your finger, and bring a drop of blood. Within a few seconds, the device will show the result.

How to deal with ketones and ketoacidosis?

 The first thing to do if you have confirmed the presence of ketones in the body is to put a joke. Insulin blocks the production of new ketones.

Next, you need to replenish the supply of water. Ketones increase urine output. To avoid dehydration, drink plenty of any liquid that does not contain carbohydrates.

Be sure to identify the cause of ketones in order to prevent their formation in the future. This is where a self-monitoring diary will help you to identify patterns more easily.

Breath Ketone Meter

It is useful for a diabetic to have a means for measuring ketones on hand. The latter is a more expensive but more modern way. If you are willing to spend a little more on diagnosing your conditions, take advantage of the benefits of KT001 Wholesale Manufacturer Breath Ketone Meter for People on Keto Diet.

The only system in China today that allows you to measure breath ketones at home is breath ketone meter. The modern world allows diabetes to be controlled and understood like never before. Each of us is an expert, and you should always continue to learn how to manage your diabetes. We hope that our article has opened something new for you or helped to consolidate the old.