|
There's
Never Been a Better Time to Have Diabetes
The
Top Ten Things to Know About Nutrition and
Type 2 Diabetes
HbA1C (Hemoglobin
A1C) / Blood glucose Average
Goals
for Better Health and Nutrition
Reading and
Understanding Food Labels
Diabetes
Control Quiz
HbA1C
(Hemoglobin A1C) / Blood glucose Average
Even
if you check your blood sugar 4 times a day,
you do not see all the in-between readings
that occur. The A1C is a blood test that determines
your average blood glucose over a three-month
period. Lowering A1C has been associated with
a reduction in the risk of diabetes related
complications. It is considered ideal to have
the A1C under 6.5%. Your physician may want
this value even lower.
The following table is useful in determining
what your A1C level means in terms of your
average blood glucose.
|
HbA1c
%
|
Average
Blood Glucose - mg/dl
|
|
12.0
|
300
|
|
11.0
|
270
|
|
10.0
|
240
|
|
9.5
|
225
|
|
9.0
|
210
|
|
8.5
|
195
|
|
8.0
|
180
|
|
7.5
|
165
|
|
7.0
|
150
|
|
6.5
|
135
|
|
6.0
|
120
|
|
5.5
|
105
|
In
addition to A1C, it is helpful to know what
desired blood glucose values are for the general
population. The following chart provides values
for both plasma values as well as whole blood
values as different meters read different
components of the blood. Check with your meter
company if you do not know which your meter
reads. Your physician may want these values
to be higher or lower depending on your individual
circumstances.
| ---- |
Normal
(non-diabetes)
|
Goal
|
Action
Suggested
|
| Plasma
Values |
---- |
---- |
---- |
| Average
pre-meal glucose (mg/dl) |
<110
|
90
- 130
|
<90
---- >150
|
| Average
bedtime glucose (mg/dl) |
<120
|
110
- 150
|
<110
---->180
|
| ---- |
----
|
----
|
----
|
| Whole
Blood Values |
----
|
----
|
----
|
| Average
pre-meal glucose (mg/dl) |
<100
|
80
- 120
|
<80
---- >140
|
| Average
bedtime glucose (mg/dl) |
<110
|
100
- 140
|
<100
---->160
|
| A1C
(%) |
<6
|
<7
|
>8
|
|
