Going to a lab for regular blood draws can feel overwhelming and exhausting, especially when you’re managing a chronic illness like type 2 diabetes. At-home A1C tests offer the convenience of testing your blood sugar from home. Some other benefits include:
Fast Results
“Some tests provide results right away,” says Ruchi Mathur, MD, an endocrinologist and the director of Cedars-Sinai’s Diabetes Outpatient Treatment and Outpatient Education Center in Los Angeles and the director of clinical research and clinical operations for the Medically Associated Science and Technology program.
Once you add your blood sample to the testing device, you can see your A1C result in as little as five minutes. To use these tests, you draw a small blood sample by pricking your finger, then follow the instructions for testing the blood with the device provided.
Other test kits have you send samples to a lab, which returns results in days or weeks, says Dr. Mathur.
Accessible Testing
“The advantages of using the at-home A1C testing are especially helpful for patients who do not have easy access to a lab or physician’s office where they can have their blood drawn,” says Barbara Keber, MD, a primary care physician, the vice chair of family medicine at Northwell Health in Glen Cove, New York, and a professor in the department of family medicine at Hofstra University’s Zucker School of Medicine.
This includes people who live in underserved rural areas, where getting to a lab for a blood draw or having a lab tech come to their home may be impractical, says Dr. Keber. If you can’t make it to the lab in person, your provider may prefer home A1C test results over having none.
Ease of Use
One research review looked at how people felt about using home A1C tests and found that up to 99 percent of people felt that the kits were easy to use, and up to 94 percent of them said that they would use one again. At-home A1C test kits are small, battery-powered, and easy to store.
Treatment Adjustments
“Having a recent A1C result can help patients and healthcare professionals decide whether diabetes treatment may need to be adjusted, including during telehealth visits,” says Mathur.
New Perspective
An at-home A1C test can help you stay more aware of your diabetes management. “Seeing A1C results at home may help people better understand how medications, eating habits, physical activity, and other choices affect their blood sugar over time,” says Mathur.