are they any good? accurate? any brands that anyone can recommend? thanks.

Do a google search on CardioChek. There are two versions. One sells for $200+/-. The other has the same accuracy and precision but performs a full lipid panel with a single sample. It costs several hundred dollars more.

I tried a home test (around $17 for two tests) for total cholesterol only with no fasting. Kind of a waste of money since I get tested by the doctor often enough but I wanted to see how and if they work. Not very well it seems - the total reading bore scant resemblance to the doctor's lab results.\

Am I allowed to give the product name here? Or will I be banned if I do?

Originally posted by GeorgiaPeech:
I tried a home test (around $17 for two tests) for total cholesterol only with no fasting. Kind of a waste of money since I get tested by the doctor often enough but I wanted to see how and if they work. Not very well it seems - the total reading bore scant resemblance to the doctor's lab results.\
The method used by these tests are distinctly different than the method used by the Cardiocheck meters.

Yes, I'm sure it is very different. The original poster asked if anyone had used home tests and I was merely reporting that I had tried one and wasn't that impressed with it.

In retrospect I also wonder why one would feel the need to be able to perform these tests at home instead of having them done at a lab.

Originally posted by GeorgiaPeech:
In retrospect I also wonder why one would feel the need to be able to perform these tests at home instead of having them done at a lab.
One reason some folks opt for the devices that measure TC/HDL/Trig is if they are in a process of trying various herbs or supplements to lower TC/LDL/Trigs or raise HDL, they may want to monitor the progress for these various supplements to either continue with that particular regimen or decide to stop and try some other means. Relying on a traditional lab would require paying yourself for the blood work as it is not likely that insurance would fund repeated tests necessary to monitor the efficacy of herbs or supplements one was taking for this purpose.

The meter provides a not too expensive tool to help the consumer determine if they are on the course they want to be or if some changes might be needed to get them to their goal.

I use a product called cholestrak. I have used it 3 or 4 seperate times now and compared it to the labs total cholesteral number and they have always been very close. Give or take a little. It doesnt break down by ldls, hdls, trig etc but still a good gauge

I just had to register so I could respond to this thread. I purchased the Lifestream Cholesterol Monitor which only measures total cholesterol. I used it for about a year and a half, thinking my diet, exercise, and supplements must be helping because my numbers kept going down. The day I went in for a blood test at my doctor's, I also did a test with my home monitor. The home monitor tested at 194. My doctor's test was a whopping 290. Not even CLOSE! Normally, my thinking is to sell something I don't want any more on Ebay, but in all good conscience, I could not do that! I threw it away. So be wary of the home tests. (At least Lifestream.)

Originally posted by Maggie K:
The home monitor tested at 194. My doctor's test was a whopping 290. Not even CLOSE! Normally, my thinking is to sell something I don't want any more on Ebay, but in all good conscience, I could not do that! I threw it away. So be wary of the home tests. (At least Lifestream.)
My dozens of readings taken with the LifeStream as a supporting test to compare to my BioScanner 2000 readings tell me that I would have less confidence in the odd labs result. All things are possible. But, over the past year, I have probably taken 20 readings with my Lifestream. My typical procedure is to take a full profile with my Bioscanner and a TC with the LifeStream as a means of double checking the results from the Bio Scanner. The TC readings have never been off more than 15 points from one to the other. Usually they are quite close.

My experience has reinforced my suspicion of questionable lab results.