Testing for ketones

Ketones are acids produced when the body burns fat for energy. They are also produced when you lose weight or when insulin is not available to help your body use sugar for energy. When the body is unable to use glucose for energy, it breaks down fat instead; as a result, ketones form in the blood and spill into the urine. These ketones can make you very sick.

Health Tips from Dr. Healy: Video: How to avoid diabetes burnout Choose another disease or condition... Allergic Rhinitis Allergies, Food Allergy & Asthma Center Alzheimer's Disease Anxiety Aortic Aneurysms Arrhythmia Arthritis, Osteo- (OA) Arthritis, Rheumatoid (RA) Asthma Atopic Dermatitis Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Back Pain Brain Tumor Bones, Joints & Muscles Center Breast Cancer Brain & Behavior Center Brain Tumor Cancer Center    Brain Tumor    Breast Cancer    Cancer Prevention    Clinical Trials    Colorectal Cancer    Endometrial Cancer    Living With and Beyond Cancer    Lung Cancer    Prostate Cancer    Skin Cancer Cardiomyopathy Cataracts Cholesterol Control Clinical Trials Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Colorectal Cancer Congenital Heart Disease Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) Crohn's Disease Depression Diabetes Center Diabetes, Type 1 Diabetes, Type 2 Digestive Disorders Center Eczema Endometrial Cancer Erectile Dysfunction (ED) Eye & Vision Center Fibromyalgia Food Allergies Gallstone Disease Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) GERD Glaucoma Hay Fever Headache Heart Center Hepatitis A Hepatitis B Hepatitis C High Blood Pressure Hypertension Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) Impotence Insomnia Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Living With and Beyond Cancer Losing Weight Lung Cancer Macular Degeneration Memory Loss Osteoarthritis (OA) Osteoporosis Parkinson's Disease Peptic Ulcer Prediabetes Prostate Cancer Respiratory Disorders Center Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) Sexual & Reproductive Health Center Sinusitis Skin Cancer Sleep Apnea Sleep Center Stroke Type 1 Diabetes Type 2 Diabetes Ulcerative Colitis (UC) Weight Control See more online resources for diabetes information More on Diabetes Types 1 Diabetes-Related Clinical Trials Information Email this page Print this section

You can test to see if your body is making ketones by doing a simple urine test. There are several products available for ketone testing that can be purchased without a prescription. Common product names include Ketostix, Chemstrip K, and Acetest. The test result can be negative or show small, moderate, or large quantities of ketones.

You should test for ketones:

• Anytime your blood glucose is over 250 mg/dl for two checks in a row.
• When you are ill. Often illness, infections, or injuries will cause sudden high blood glucose, and this is an especially important time to check for ketones.
• When you are planning to exercise and the blood glucose is over 250 mg/dl.
• If you are pregnant, you should test for ketones each morning before breakfast and anytime the blood glucose is over 250 mg/dl.
• As long as blood glucose levels are not too high, the presence of ketones is not a problem; this may occur if you are trying to lose weight.
• Untreated high blood glucose with ketones can lead to a life-threatening condition called diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). If the ketone test is positive, call your diabetes educator or physician to see if you need more insulin, and drink plenty of water and noncaloric fluids to "wash out" the ketones. Continue testing your blood glucose every three to four hours, testing for ketones if the blood glucose is over 250 mg/dl. Do not exercise if your blood glucose is over 250 mg/dl and ketones are present.