Actually, 70% alcohol is better than 90%… has to do with the 90% dehydrating the bacteria before the protein becomes denatured and it is not as good an antiseptic.
Agreeed Pete. My mom decided to put cotton balls on a jar and pour alchol over them when I first took Type 1 (none of these fancy swabs then just cotton balls and alchol back then) tyhat seemed to work for about 3 years then having D just became part of my life and I didn’t even think about using them.
My hands use to get so dry they cracked and bleed. I use body lotion on my hands at night and have less of a problem now
Try using body lotion at night on your hands instead of hand lotion.
I have no problem using alcohol prep swabs for injection sites and vial/pen wiping. I don't bother with BG tests, as I don't change the lancet very often anyway, so what would be the point?
What I don't like is feeling like I'm getting price gouged when buying them. There's a major drug store chain where I discovered if I buy a box of swabs in the diabetes row, I pay the same amount for a box of 100 as I'd pay for a box of 120 in the first aid row. I guess moving a product two more feet is really expensive.
I use IV preps for set changes, but more for better adherence than anything else. I don’t use anything for manual injections as I don’t really see a particular need to spend the time. However, I doubt that the exposure from the swabs is enough to pose a health concern.
I’ve use alcohol swabs for as long as I’ve had D which is 51 years…so far my liver is ok. As with a lot of studies nothing is the truth most studies are too small and are only observations for the moment. But if it works for you so be it.
I've never used any form of alcohol for cleansing prior to injecting or blood testing, they advised against it at the hospital when I was diagnosed (6 years ago)
For the pump though they insisted on far more rigorous cleansing before cannula insertion. Pump education sessions included handwashing (complete with diagrams of how to do it thoroughly) and I'm also prescribed chlorhexidine and sterile gauze patches to clean the site and top of the insulin vial plus a natty sterile plastic mat to lay out everything needed for each change. ...though when I've needed to change a set in the middle of nowhere, all that has gone by the board, with so far, no dire consequences.
I used to put isopropyl on the rubber of the insulin vial but don’t bother anymore. No vial has spoiled.
When I was first diagnosed they werent sure wether I was type 1 or 2 so I was put on insulin [now on oral meds. I was told not to use the alcohol wipes on my skin as it toughens the skin up making injections harder to do. They said instead to wipe the pen before fixing on the needle. Now when I check my blood sugars I just wash my hands with soap before I test.
Don, I remember reading several years ago in an issue of Forecast magazine that diabetics who used alcohol swabs for their finger pricks and/or their insulin injections had more infections than people who didn’t use alcohol swabs. Since then, I haven’t really used alcohol swabs and I don’t miss them. My hands are too dry for lots of alcohol!
I have HORRID skin…it’s my stepson that is diabetic so I dont know if it will affect your readings or not, but there is this lotion called Udderly Smooth you can get it at Walmart, its in a cow print tub generally, and a lot of times you have to find it in the isle near the foot creams and stuff instead of with lotions, but two days of using it and all the bleeding cracked painful skin is gone for me. I can’t use most lotions because the dye/perfumes/etc bother my hands but this one doesnt leave any oil feeling or smell really. It will burn when your hands are all cracked and they will turn red but a night or two of that and you’ll feel much better!! 
We quit using swabs because it was such a hassle – especially when traveling around with the pen. Hands don’t get washed either. So far so good.
Emmy, that sounds awful! Are you seeing an allergist? There are some medications which help, although they may want to use a steroid inhaler for your asthma. That MAY raise your BGs, but this is a case where you need to adjust your diabetes medications accordingly, because asthma can be life-threatening.
I almost died from an asthma attack when I lived in Japan in my early 20's -- I didn't know I even had asthma until I lay down one evening and suddenly couldn't breathe at all. Only because I started crying, and had a little spurt of adrenaline, which relieved me enough to breathe a LITTLE, did I survive. As it was, I was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where they gave me an adrenaline shot, and kept me overnight.
At the time, I didn't have diabetes -- that would have made it worse. But what I'm trying to say is that you can't play around with asthma! Please let me know you're taking care of it!
"a couple years after diagnosis they hinted to me that I didn't really have to change out the lancet every time either"
I only change to lancets when I open a new container of strips, so I use it for 50 tests. I think I could use it longer than that but I have the system down now and don't want to change.
When I was on MDIs I reused the syringe/needle combo 7 times before using a new one. I came by that number when I felt them getting noticeably dull and that was the magic number.
"If I pumped, I would consider it prudent and practical to use it on
insertion sites. After all, the insertion site is going to basically be
an open wound for days and infection is a bigger concern."
But even if the alcohol does something, why use it on the insertion site? It is like an open wound, but the alcohol is gone after a minute when it evaporates, so it doesn’t do anything for the wound? Just thinking out loud here and wondering…
if i am taking a shot, i wash my hands before
but i do not use alcohol swabs to clean the area of injection unless i see blood.
i have been doing this for over 17 yrs and i am type 1
Hi.. interesting topic. I wish I could show this article to the doormen at the nightclub when they try and stamp my hand with a big ink pad!! ;-) I detest it and always think about the ink seeping in through my skin but I was never sure why!
I tend not to bother with alcohol swabs but I do wash my hands with soap because I always think that a tiny bit of glucose could be on my hands from something I previously ate. This has also been shown on another thread on the site since, saying it affected the BG readings depending on what food was ate / handled beforehand.
I don’t know why I never knew until reading this that alcohol swabbing was bad for you. My blood tests show my liver putting off enzymes
I never use swabs while injecting. I do however, use swabs and sometimes glue swabs when putting in my pump sets. I have had two difficult infections while pumping. In one instance i used a swab and in the other i did not. I am guessing that in the one case I did not swab, it might have been better if i had. But who knows.
rick phillips