Giddy, over a meter

I've had diabetes for 23 years, and have been using an insulin pump for 13. My 'diabetes life' has always included diabetes technology - starting with my first, book-sized accu-chek meter. I've used probably every non-pump-specific meter that's come along since 1986. I've loved each improvement, whether it be the drop from a minute-long test to 30 seconds, a smaller sample size, or strips that don't require you to change a code somewhere on the meter.

The enhancements that make me the happiest are the ones that, in some way, make diabetes technology work for me. By that I mean, things that make it easier for me to test, and easier for me to use the data. I am not the kind of person with diabetes who successfully writes down numbers and carbs and doses. I have misplaced more logbooks than I care to admit, and I've been guilty of only looking at the info in the week prior to an endo appointment. Which is ridiculous, when you think about it, because half the value of testing blood sugar is to spot trends and fix trouble areas. Sure, I can make on-the-spot dosing decisions based on a number, but that's only part of the equation.

So a few weeks ago I started using the new Bayer Contour USB (see disclaimer below). The folks at Bayer sent me a meter for my review. As always, they've asked for an honest evaluation of the product.

And I'm not sure how to do that without sounding downright in love with this meter. I spent the last day or two trying to find something I don't like about it. And I can't. This meter is just plain awesome, and I don't care how much of a diabetes nerd I sound like!

How do I love thee, USB? Let me count the ways...

1) Look and Feel. It's snazzy. It's about the size of a one touch mini, but it sacrifices none of the fancy features of a larger meter. The bright colorful display is easy on my (old) eyes, and the simple three-buttons are easy to use.

2) Data on the meter. Yes, there are many meters out there that store data and allow you to scroll through reports. The Contour USB is as good as any of them, easy to navigate and read. I really can't emphasize enough how easy it is to read. Blood sugar values are displayed prominently, color coded based on range (high, low, and in range each have their own color). Notes about the blood sugar result scroll below the number: "High blood sugar, before meal". This keeps the display clean and un-cluttered.

And the Contour USB has one simple feature that I love (don't laugh): it's obvious which button you use to turn it on, and it's obvious how you access the logbook (by pressing the button next to 'logbook'). Perhaps I'm an impatient gal, but I've often struggled to figure out what combination of buttons gets me into a meter history, and how to move forward and back through records. This meter is super easy in that respect.

3) Putting data on my computer. OK, again, I'm going to reveal my lack of patience. I work with computers all day. I understand software. Yet I have persistently struggled with software to organize and review my blood sugars. I get discouraged by not knowing how to quickly get where I need to be in the system. I get annoyed when the computer that has the software crashes, or is unavailable to me. I lose the damn cable. Often.

Yes, those are all things that I could work around by changing my behaviors, but now I don't have to. The Contour USB has the software on the meter, and a built-in USB connection. It took me all of 5 minutes to install and set up the software on my computer. If I'm on the road with a laptop, I can install it there. I can install it and download data anywhere at a moment's notice, without CD or cable. Sure, I don't have much occasion to download my diabetes data on the fly, but I'm thrilled with the plug and play software, because it knocks out a whole bunch of my excuses for not keeping blood sugar records.

4) Understanding the Data. I've used other blood sugar tracking software, including Bayer's, and I've hated it. The things I want to do: view specific date ranges, make notes, and just print the darn info out, have been cumbersome. The Glucofacts Deluxe software on the Contour USB is incredibly intuitive. Without reading a single manual or handy quick start guide (I know, that's bad, but it's the way I am), I had a printout of my logbook for the last week, plus a nifty graph illustrating just how often I run high in the afternoons, in about 7 minutes. I know my averages by time of day, my standard deviation, and my lowest lows and highest highs.

5) The little things.

• Did I mention it's cool? My kids even think so.
  
• It's small - it fits nicely on the miniscule 'shelf' on the treadmill. I can put it in my pocket with strips and lancet, and travel 'light', diabetes-wise.
• It has a light for testing in the dark. I don't know why ALL meters don't have this. What good is a tiny sample size if you can't see well enough to get blood on the strip at night? (Confession, I did have to look up how to turn it on in the manual. But that was the only thing I couldn't figure out intuitively.)
• You can set reminders for follow up tests.
• It uses the no-coding, easy-fill Contour strips I love. No other strip has worked as well for me - I almost never have to re-test due to not getting enough blood in the strip, even when I'm low and shakey.
  
• It has a rechargeable battery. I'm a tad bit worried I'll misplace the charging cord. But if I do, I can pop the meter into the USB port on my computer, and charge away.

Simply put, this is a meter that meets my needs - and goes above and beyond with convenience and ease-of-use. On top of all that, it's the kind of diabetes technology that motivates me. I'm a big fan of using diabetes gadgets to lift me out of a slump, by shaking up my routine or offering a new feature. I think that this meter, with its no-excuses access to my blood sugar information, is going to help keep me out of those slumps.


Disclosure: In 2004, I won the Bayer Dream Fund contest. Proceeds sponsored the publication and free distribution of my book, "When You're a Parent with Diabetes". I have not been under contract with Bayer since 2006, and am no longer a paid spokesperson for Bayer.