How Blood Sugar Affects Your Body
When you have diabetes, your blood sugar (glucose) levels may be consistently high. Over time, this can damage your body and lead to many other problems. How much sugar in the blood is too much? And why is high glucose so bad for you? Here’s a look at how your levels affect your health. They're less than 100 mg/dL after not eating (fasting) for at least 8 hours. And they're less than 140 mg/dL 2 hours after eating. During the day, levels tend to be at their lowest just before meals. For most people without diabetes, blood sugar levels before meals hover around 70 to 80 mg/dL. For some people, 60 is normal; for others, 90. What's a low sugar level? It varies widely, too. Many people's glucose won't ever fall below 60, even with prolonged fasting. When you diet or fast, the liver keeps your levels normal by turning fat and muscle into sugar. A few people's levels may fall somewhat lower. Doctors use these tests to find out if you have diabetes: Fasting plasma glucose test. The doctor tests your blood sugar levels after fasting for 8 hours and it’s higher than 126 mg/dL. Oral glucose tolerance test. After fasting for 8 hours, you get a special sugary drink. Two hours later your sugar level is higher than 200. Random check. The doctor tests your blood sugar and it’s higher than 200, plus you’re peeing more, always thirsty, and you’ve gained or lost a significant amount of weight. He’ll then do a fasting sugar level test or an oral glucose tolerance test to confirm the diagnosis. Any sugar levels higher than normal are unhealthy. Levels that are higher than normal, but not reaching the point of full-blown diabetes, are called prediabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association, 86 million people in the U.S. have this condition, which can lead to diabetes Continue reading >>
Understanding A Type 2 Diabetes Diagnosis
Diagnosing Type 2 Diabetes Type 2 diabetes is a manageable condition. Once you’re diagnosed, you can learn what to do to stay healthy. Diabetes is grouped into different types. The most commonly diagnosed are gestational diabetes, type 1 diabetes, and type 2 diabetes. Gestational Diabetes Maybe you have a friend who was told she had diabetes during pregnancy. That type is called gestational diabetes. It can develop during the second or third trimester of pregnancy. Gestational diabetes usually goes away after the baby is born. Type 1 Diabetes You may have had a childhood friend with diabetes who had to take insulin every day. That type is called type 1 diabetes. The peak age of onset is in the midteens. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), type 1 makes up 5 percent of all cases of diabetes. Type 2 Diabetes Type 2 diabetes makes up 90 to 95 percent of all diagnosed cases of diabetes, according to the CDC. It is also called adult-onset diabetes. Although it can occur at any age, it’s more common in people older than 40. If you think you might have diabetes, talk to your doctor. Uncontrolled type 2 diabetes can cause severe complications, such as: amputation of the legs and feet blindness heart disease kidney disease stroke According to the CDC, diabetes is the 7th leading cause of death in the United States. People with diabetes are 1.5 times as likely to die as people of the same age who don’t have diabetes. Many of the severe side effects of diabetes can be avoided with treatment. That’s why it’s so important to be diagnosed as soon as possible. Some people are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes because they have symptoms. Early diabetes symptoms include: increased or frequent urination increased thirst fatigue cuts or sores that won Continue reading >>
What A High Blood Sugar Feels Like? Signs & Symptoms Of Hyperglycemia
I get my first cup of coffee and sit on the sun deck with the birds singing. I feel as if I have not slept a wink, and my head aches. I could go back to bed and sleep all day, but work awaits. It’s a beautiful, sunny day, but my body feels heavy, and stuck to the chair. It hurts to lift my arms. My blood sugar was 381 this morning. Again. I think about having to face the day at the office. Driving down the interstate, the lines are blurry. I know that if the DMV got wind of it, I might not be driving as high as my A1C had been. When I get to the office, I walk in with a dark fog feeling surrounding me, and take some deep breaths at my desk. As I begin to review the end of the month reports, the numbers get fuzzy, and I can’t concentrate on them. My 36 ounce water bottle with only a few sips left beads sweat on the desk, and it’s across the building to get to the bathroom. Sometimes it’s a race to get there in time. My body is taught and swollen, like the Blueberry Girl from Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. My blood sugar is a blue river of sticky blueberry filling as I roll down the hall toward the bathroom. I feel that if I had a needle, I could pop myself. That would surely be a mess. My skin is so dry and flaky that no amount of lotion will hydrate it. No amount of water can quench my thirst, and my mouth feels like the Sahara Desert. With one hand on the water cooler, and the other hand on the bathroom door, I guzzled down what I could until the feeling hit that I wasn’t going to be able to wait any longer. I was out of regular insulin, and I had taken my long acting insulin. I was not so patiently waiting for it to kick in. This morning was not starting out so well. I’d have to tackle the reports in my current brain fog. I did have a doctor’s appoin Continue reading >>
New Research On High Glucose Levels
American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines advise “lowering A1C to below or around 7%” and postprandial (after-meal) glucose levels to 180 mg/dl or below. But new research shows that these glucose levels damage blood vessels, nerves, organs, and beta cells. An article by diabetes blogger Jenny Ruhl analyzes at what blood glucose level organ damage starts. According to Ruhl, research shows that glucose can do harm at much lower levels than doctors had thought. This news could be discouraging or even terrifying. If it’s hard to meet your current glucose goals, how will you reach tighter goals? Such news might make some people give up. But remember, a high postprandial or fasting reading won’t kill you. All we know is that higher numbers correlate with higher chances of complications. You have time to react. In fact, we could choose to look at this as good news. We all know of people who developed complications despite “good control.” But complications are not inevitable; it’s just that so-called “good control” wasn’t really all that good. First, the numbers. “Post-meal blood sugars of 140 mg/dl [milligrams per deciliter] and higher, and fasting blood sugars over 100 mg/dl [can] cause permanent organ damage and cause diabetes to progress,” Ruhl writes. For nerve damage, University of Utah researchers studied people with painful sensory neuropathy, or nerve damage. They found that participants who did not have diabetes but who had impaired glucose tolerance on an oral glucose tolerance test, or OGTT, (meaning that their glucose levels rose to between 140 mg/dl and 200 mg/dl in response to drinking a glucose-rich drink) were much more likely to have a diabetic form of neuropathy than those with lower blood glucose levels. The higher these OGTT num Continue reading >>
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What Is Hyperglycemia?
Hyperglycemia, a high level of sugar in the blood, is a hallmark of diabetes. Your blood sugar levels fluctuate over the course of a day: Levels are higher right after meals, as carbohydrates are broken down into glucose (sugar), and lower after exercise, when glucose has been burned to fuel the activity. In someone who doesn't have diabetes, blood sugar levels stay within a narrow range. Between meals, the concentration of sugar in the blood ranges from about 60 to 100 mg/dl (milligrams per deciliter). After meals it may reach 120 to 130 mg/dl, but rarely goes higher than 140 mg/dl. But if you have type 2 diabetes, blood sugar levels can go much higher — to 200, 300, or even 400 mg/dl and beyond — and will go much higher unless you take the necessary steps to bring them down. Hyperglycemia Symptoms High blood sugar doesn't always produce symptoms, so it's important to check your blood sugar regularly, as indicated by your doctor. Hyperglycemia symptoms include: Frequent urination Extreme thirst Feeling tired and weak Blurry vision Feeling hungry, even after eating Causes of Hyperglycemia If you've been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, a treatment plan is put in place to lower blood sugar and keep it as close to the normal range as possible. But even after you start treatment, you may still develop hyperglycemia at times. When you have diabetes, it's almost impossible not to have hyperglycemia — and high blood sugar can happen for no identifiable reason. Some of the reasons blood sugar may go too high include: Missing prescribed medicines or taking medication at the wrong times or in the wrong amounts High food intake or larger consumptions of carbohydrate than expected or intended Lack of sleep Emotional stress Intense exercise Illness is another important — and Continue reading >>
Diagnosing Diabetes
How much do you know? Self assessment quizzes are available for topics covered in this website. Find out how much you have learned about Diabetes. Random or casual plasma glucose test A plasma glucose test is a measure of how much sugar/glucose you have circulating in your blood. “Random” or “Casual” simply means that you have blood drawn at a laboratory at any time. Whether you have fasted or recently eaten will not affect the test. A plasma glucose test measurement equal to or greater than 200 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) indicates that you may have diabetes. To be sure, you will need to have the test results confirmed on another day through another random test, or by taking a fasting plasma glucose test or an oral glucose tolerance test. Fasting plasma glucose test This simple blood test is taken after you have abstained from food and drink (except water) for at least 8 hours. A normal plasma glucose level after fasting is between 60 and 99 mg/dl. Diabetes is not confirmed until 2 separate fasting plasma glucose tests each measure 126 or greater. Oral glucose tolerance test It’s possible for people with diabetes – even those with symptoms – to have a normal fasting plasma glucose test. If you fall into this category, you will again be asked to abstain from food and drink (except water) for 8 hours and then drink a liquid containing a known amount of glucose, usually 75 grams.Your blood is drawn before drinking the glucose mixture and 2 hours later. You will be asked to refrain from eating until the test is completed. This test is called an Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT). Your fasting plasma glucose normally is less than 100 mg/dl. Values from 100mg/dl to 126 mg/dl are diagnostic of pre-diabetes. Fasting plasma glucose levels equal or above 126 m Continue reading >>
Type 2 Diabetes
Print Diagnosis To diagnose type 2 diabetes, you'll be given a: Glycated hemoglobin (A1C) test. This blood test indicates your average blood sugar level for the past two to three months. It measures the percentage of blood sugar attached to hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells. The higher your blood sugar levels, the more hemoglobin you'll have with sugar attached. An A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher on two separate tests indicates you have diabetes. A result between 5.7 and 6.4 percent is considered prediabetes, which indicates a high risk of developing diabetes. Normal levels are below 5.7 percent. If the A1C test isn't available, or if you have certain conditions — such as if you're pregnant or have an uncommon form of hemoglobin (known as a hemoglobin variant) — that can make the A1C test inaccurate, your doctor may use the following tests to diagnose diabetes: Random blood sugar test. A blood sample will be taken at a random time. Blood sugar values are expressed in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or millimoles per liter (mmol/L). Regardless of when you last ate, a random blood sugar level of 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or higher suggests diabetes, especially when coupled with any of the signs and symptoms of diabetes, such as frequent urination and extreme thirst. Fasting blood sugar test. A blood sample will be taken after an overnight fast. A fasting blood sugar level less than 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L) is normal. A fasting blood sugar level from 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L) is considered prediabetes. If it's 126 mg/dL (7 mmol/L) or higher on two separate tests, you have diabetes. Oral glucose tolerance test. For this test, you fast overnight, and the fasting blood sugar level is measured. Then you drink a sugary liquid, and blood s Continue reading >>
How Dangerous Is Blood Sugar In The 200s?
How Dangerous Is Blood Sugar in the 200s? Under certain conditions, a blood sugar reading in the 200s can damage the bodys organs. The longer that your glucose (blood sugar) remains very high, the more likely it will cause a lot of problems and this includes blindness. 200 Blood sugar in the 200s isnt dangerous in the short term, and for most people has no real symptoms, but in the long term causes damage, as the bodys organs cant properly use the energy they need to function, says Susan L. Besser, MD, with Mercy Medical Center , Baltimore, and Diplomate American Board of Obesity Medicine and board certified by the American Board of Family Medicine. Dr. Besser continues, It takes longer with lower high sugars [e.g., a blood sugar in the 200s] because if the numbers are lower, it means the body is still able to use ingested sugar as fuel, at least to some degree. The higher the glucose, the less the body is able to use the ingested sugar as energy. The higher the sugar in the blood, the more likely there will be symptoms of diabetes such as thirst (the blood is thicker and the body is trying to dilute it). Another immediate symptom of abnormally high blood sugar is increased urination. But this is not from drinking more water from the excessive thirst. Its from the body attempting to get rid of all the sugar in the circulating blood. The thirst is actually from all the urination. 200 Unexplained weight loss is another outcome of persistent very elevated glucose. Dr. Besser explains that the body is in essence eating itself for energy because it cant get energy for food. 200 The sugar in the blood is supposed to fuel muscle cells, but they never get to the muscle cells either because theres no insulin to shuttle them there, or the insulin receptor sites on the muscle cel Continue reading >>
Blood Sugar Testing 101 For People With Type 2 Diabetes: Why, When & What To Do
Blood Sugar Testing 101 for People with Type 2 Diabetes: Why, When & What to Do I am a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator, have run Diabetes Centers in hospitals, have a private practice in medical nutrition therapy specializing in metabolic syndrome, weight loss, and type 2 diabetes, and have written a NY Times Bestselling book on the same topics. January 10, 2012 was the world-wide release of my newest book, The Diabetes Miracle . Guess what? If you asked me what my blood sugar is right now, I have no idea. Neither do you! Did you know that unless your blood sugar is over 200mg/dL, you most likely will have none of the traditional diabetes symptoms such as excessive thirst, urination, fatigue, hunger, or wounds that will not heal? If youve run blood sugar over 200mg/dL for a period of time, you probably wont even have symptoms when your sugar exceeds that 200mg/dL point. If you have been prescribed medication for diabetes that is aimed at reducing your blood sugar and you begin to feel shaky, dizzy, nauseated, cant speak clearly, cant think, feel wiped out.you may assume that you are hypoglycemic. Are you? Without testing, you really have no ideayour once high readings may have returned to normal rangeand your body may assume you are hypoglycemic when you are far from it! If you grab some juice or glucose tabs, you will push that normal sugar right back into the very high range. Or maybe those symptoms really are hypoglycemia and if you dont treat it, you will lose consciousness, fall down the stairs, drop your child, run off the road. Your Hemoglobin A1C might be 6.3 and you think to yourself: Wow, my blood sugar is now normalwhy should I spend the money and take the time to test? Do you realize that hemoglobin A1C is your average blood sugar 24 ho Continue reading >>
Diagnosing Diabetes
In diagnosing diabetes, physicians primarily depend upon the results of specific glucose tests. However, test results are just part of the information that goes into the diagnosis of type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Doctors also take into account your physical exam, presence or absence of symptoms, and medical history. Some people who are significantly ill will have transient problems with elevated blood sugars, which will then return to normal after the illness has resolved. Also, some medications may alter your blood glucose levels (most commonly steroids and certain diuretics, such as water pills). The 2 main tests used to measure the presence of blood sugar problems are the direct measurement of glucose levels in the blood during an overnight fast and measurement of the body's ability to appropriately handle the excess sugar presented after drinking a high glucose drink. Fasting Blood Glucose (Blood Sugar) Level A value above 126 mg/dL on at least 2 occasions typically means a person has diabetes. The Oral Glucose Tolerance Test An oral glucose tolerance test is one that can be performed in a doctor's office or a lab. The person being tested starts the test in a fasting state (having no food or drink except water for at least 10 hours but not greater than 16 hours). An initial blood sugar is drawn and then the person is given a "glucola" bottle with a high amount of sugar in it (75 grams of glucose or 100 grams for pregnant women). The person then has their blood tested again 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, and 3 hours after drinking the high glucose drink. For the test to give reliable results, you must be in good health (not have any other illnesses, not even a cold). Also, you should be normally active (for example, not lying down or confined to a bed like a patient in a Continue reading >>
Stop Spiking Those Sugars!
Many people (and their doctors) use A1C and fasting blood glucose levels to gauge their diabetes control. But those numbers only tell half the story. To prevent organ damage, we also have to keep glucose from spiking after meals. How can we do that? Do You Spike? If you just check your blood glucose levels in the morning and maybe at bedtime, you will miss these spikes. Say your numbers at those times usually run about 125 mg/dl. If your blood sugar levels were like that all day, your A1C would be about 6.0%. But maybe when the doctor tests your A1C, it might be closer to 7.6%. You know then you are spiking after meals high enough to raise your average sugar to 170, which means spiking well over 200. You can find a good calculator for converting A1C to average glucose here. Glucose levels above 140 can lead to inflammation of blood vessels and organs. The higher the spike goes and the longer it lasts, the more damage there is likely to be. With any type of diabetes, we want to get those spikes down, and it takes a lot of monitoring and experimenting to get it right. Gary Scheiner, MS, CDE, who has Type 1, wrote here that for Type 1s, it’s about managing your insulin so that it peaks when blood glucose is peaking and drops off when glucose levels do. You can only do that with fast-acting insulin injections or a pump. But even then, you have to know how much a given meal is likely to raise your sugar to know how much to give and when to give it. Scheiner recommends testing about an hour after completing a meal or snack. That’s when sugar levels tend to be highest. Jenny Ruhl at Diabetes Update says different people and different foods spike differently. So to find the very highest spike, you might have to try different times. “Meals heavy in fat digest more slowly t Continue reading >>
Track Your Blood Sugar
Read the Instructions for Use and take Tresiba® exactly as your health care provider tells you to Do not do any conversion of your dose. The dose counter always shows the selected dose in units Know the type and strength of insulin you take. Do not change the type of insulin you take unless your health care provider tells you to Adults - If you miss or are delayed in taking your dose of Tresiba®: Take your dose as soon as you remember, then continue with your regular dosing schedule Make sure there are at least 8 hours between doses If children miss a dose of Tresiba®: Call the healthcare provider for information and instructions about checking blood sugar levels more often until the next scheduled dose of Tresiba® Check your blood sugar levels. Ask your health care provider what your blood sugar levels should be and when you should check them Do not reuse or share your needles with other people. You may give them a serious infection, or get a serious infection from them Never inject Tresiba® into a vein or muscle Never use a syringe to remove Tresiba® from the FlexTouch® pen Tresiba® may cause serious side effects that can be life-threatening, including: Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). Signs and symptoms that may indicate low blood sugar include anxiety, irritability, mood changes, dizziness, sweating, confusion, and headache Low potassium in your blood (hypokalemia) Heart failure in some people if taken with thiazolidinediones (TZDs). This can happen even if you have never had heart failure or heart problems. If you already have heart failure, it may get worse while you take TZDs with Tresiba®. Tell your health care provider if you have any new or worse symptoms of heart failure including shortness of breath, tiredness, swelling of your ankles or feet, and su Continue reading >>
Must Read Articles Related To High Blood Sugar (hyperglycemia)
A A A High Blood Sugar (Hyperglycemia) Whenever the glucose (sugar) level in one's blood rises high temporarily, this condition is known as hyperglycemia. The opposite condition, low blood sugar, is called hypoglycemia. Glucose comes from most foods, and the body uses other chemicals to create glucose in the liver and muscles. The blood carries glucose (blood sugar) to all the cells in the body. To carry glucose into the cells as an energy supply, cells need help from insulin. Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas, an organ near the stomach. The pancreas releases insulin into the blood, based upon the blood sugar level. Insulin helps move glucose from digested food into cells. Sometimes, the body stops making insulin (as in type 1 diabetes), or the insulin does not work properly (as in type 2 diabetes). In diabetic patients, glucose does not enter the cells sufficiently, thus staying in the blood and creating high blood sugar levels. Blood sugar levels can be measured in seconds by using a blood glucose meter, also known as a glucometer. A tiny drop of blood from the finger or forearm is placed on a test strip and inserted into the glucometer. The blood sugar (or glucose) level is displayed digitally within seconds. Blood glucose levels vary widely throughout the day and night in people with diabetes. Ideally, blood glucose levels range from 90 to 130 mg/dL before meals, and below 180 mg/dL within 1 to 2 hours after a meal. Adolescents and adults with diabetes strive to keep their blood sugar levels within a controlled range, usually 80-150 mg/dL before meals. Doctors and diabetes health educators guide each patient to determine their optimal range of blood glucose control. When blood sugar levels remain high for several hours, dehydration and more serious complicat Continue reading >>
Questions And Answers - Blood Sugar
Use the chart below to help understand how different test results can indicate pre-diabetes or diabetes Fasting Blood Glucose Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) Random Blood Sugar (taken any time of day with or without fasting) A1C Ideal Result Less than 100mg/dl Less than 140 mg/dl Less than 140 (even after eating a large meal) Less than 5.7% Pre-diabetes 100-125mg/dl 140-199mg/dl 140-200 5.7% to 6.4% Diabetes 126mg/dl and greater 200 mg/dl and greater 200 or greater 6.5% or more Q: I have been told that I have diabetes, or "pre-diabetes", or that I am in the "honeymoon period" . My readings are all over the place: sometimes in the 120's, others in the 90's, sometimes, but rarely in the 150-170's. My doctor does not want to put me on medication yet. I exercise regularly and am not overweight though my diet is variable. I certainly like sweets, pizza, and pasta. What is the long term effect of these continued high blood sugar levels? A: Firstly, kudos for your physician for giving diet/lifestyle changes a chance to work. Reduction of body fat often is the first best start. This may or may not be true in your case but certainly sweets, pizza, etc. are affecting your numbers. If you can discipline yourself at this time to eat unrefined foods and be more active, your beta cells that produce insulin may get the rest they need to become efficient again. Our diabetes management booklet has many referenced foods/supplements that may help to stabilize your glucose levels. In time, your favorite foods may be reintroduced in moderate amounts. You appear to be more in the pre-diabetes range at this time. Complications are a long process. If your daytime levels stay under 120-140, that is good. Fasting levels are higher due to hormonal activity nighttime; these levels are a much sl Continue reading >>
Q&a: How To Lower Your Blood Sugar When It’s Over 200 Mg/dl
Q: How do I lower my blood sugar when it goes over 200 mg/dl? I have Type 2 diabetes. A: An excellent question, but a complicated one to answer. Your doctor or nurse educator should be contacted any time your blood sugar runs consistently higher than 250 mg/dl for more than two days. When a person with Type 2 diabetes encounters a high blood sugar, the strategy used in bringing it down will vary from individual to individual. This is because of the differences in treatment concerning diet, exercise, and medication. It will also depend upon the guidelines for glucose control that you and your doctor have mutually agreed upon. When high blood sugars do occur, there are a number of strategies that can be employed to adjust the glucose level back down to a normal range. These might include: 1) Eating less food at the next meal, eliminating a snack and/or eating foods with a lower glycemic index. A general rule of thumb to follow is decreasing 15 grams of carbohydrate (the amount found in one starch exchange, one fruit exchange, or one cup skim milk exchange) will lower blood glucose by 30 mg/dl. If you test your blood sugar at 182 mg/dl before a meal or snack, then eliminate one starch and one cup milk at the next meal to bring the glucose value as close to 120 mg/dl as a baseline. Although people with diabetes will respond differently to this adjustment, it provides a basic guideline to start with. For persons with Type 2 diabetes who are overweight, the loss of only 5% to 10% of total weight loss can dramatically improve blood glucose values (so just cutting calories moderately can achieve better blood glucose control). Lastly, choosing foods with a lower glycemic index, i.e., foods that do not raise blood sugar as quickly or dramatically, can help to bring blood glucose Continue reading >>
