Last night I had my usual for dinner: chick peas and a red pepper. Not that I'm a vegan or anything - I'm just lazy and this is quick and easy and full of fiber. So as I finished the last pulse on my Braun mini chopper -- I sliced my plump red pepper. My mouth watered for dinner. Time to check my blood sugar - dinners on!

I'm right handed, for those of you who were dying to know. So I pricked my left thumb and 5 seconds later my little trusty Agamatrix tells me my blood sugar is 596 mg/dL. No way, buddy! My mouth is watering. My last meal was hours ago - and my last blood sugar, 3 hours before, was 190! So I get a second opinion - a right hand opinion! The right hand says my blood sugar is 167 mg/dL. A lot more like it!

What's the moral of my story? Accuracy is subjective. The red pepper juice was invisible to the naked eye. When my semi sweet blood mixed with it - my sugar was 596 mg/dL (after I washed my hands). The right hand told a different story. Sound familiar? If I treated for the left hand without double-checking with my right-- I don't think I would've enjoyed my dinner so much. How accurate are urine strips again? I'm not that freaky. I can't chop vegetables with anything but my hands. Feel free to share your own tales of left vs. right readings. What skewed your results? And is urine testing such a bad idea, after all? I told you I was lazy.

The results of a new study show that those who consumed more fiber were less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who ate less fiber.

The researchers note that consuming fiber may help with the body's ability to handle blood sugar. The pooled results of several studies showed that people who ate the most cereal fiber had a 33% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who ate the least. A study conducted at Harvard confirmed foods including whole grain breads, high-fiber cereals, yogurt, beans and peanut butter lessened the probability of developing diabetes by 28%.

The miraculous benefits of fiber keeping adding up. Whether your motive is to reduce your risk of diabetes, lower cholesterol, hamper IBS, or suppress your hunger -- there's a reason for each of us to invite a little more fiber into our diet. Snack on your cereals, bake your muffins, or enjoy a fresh cup of blueberries -- fiber is your friend. Friends don't let friends develop diabetes.