When there are many variables and different factors influencing your blood sugar levels, you are going to have your share of both high and low readings. The level of your blood sugar is influenced by many of the following:

• your choice of food
• how much food you eat
• how accurately you time your insulin or oral hypoglycemic medication
• your menstrual cycle (women only)
• your emotions
• illnesses
• how much you weigh
• drinking too much alcohol
• your body’s resistance to insulin

Unfortunately no two days are alike but it is important to keep your blood sugar levels in what is considered to be a normal range. There are two tests that will show you what your blood sugar levels are, they are:

• the tests you do yourself with your glucometer
• the HbA1c test which gives you your true average over the previous three month period

The American Diabetes Association suggests if you keep your post-meal blood sugar targets under 180 mg/dl, your fasting level under 130 mg/dl … your HbA1c would be 7%. Many diabetic specialist will suggest a HbA1c result of 6.5%. Truly normal HbA1c levels are 5% … this level is well below the levels associated with diabetic complications. An HbA1c of 6.5% is barely under the level that research suggest damages organs and with a HbA1c of 7% neuropathy, retinopathy and other diabetic complications will develop.

Unfortunately complications start to appear in the person with type 2 diabetes less than ten years following diagnosis. This is due to the fact insulin resistance and increasing blood sugar levels have been present for up to ten to twelve years before diagnosis.

Blood Sugar Self Monitoring Guidelines:

Newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and on diet control only … self monitoring with one or two tests a week, may be required at diagnosis or afterwards depending on the effectiveness of their overall diabetes control.

Type 2 diabetes and prescribed oral hypoglycemic agents … self monitoring is usually tailored to the individual’s needs and will depend on diet control. If sulphonylurea medications have been prescribed, self monitoring will be necessary more than two or three times a week.

A type 2 diabetic who is prescribed insulin … self monitoring is recommended with daily testing, usually two to three times when first commenced on insulin. Once stable, frequency is often reduced to one to two days a week or daily at various times. Stable levels are those that vary little from day to day.

Your health care practitioner will advise you how often you should monitor your blood sugar levels, and no doubt he will be interested in seeing your results. He will also want to organize your appointment to check your HbA1c level which is carried out every three months.

• The Single Biggest Key to a Natural Diabetes Treatment
• You Probably Don't Even Know What Type II Diabetes Is!
• Candida Infection in a Diabetic Person
• Your Type 2 Diabetes Diagnosis - How Are You Handling It?
• Treatment of Diabetes
• You Can Now Get a Free Diabetic Diet Plan Online to Help Control Symptoms
• A Simple Meal Plan For Type 2 Diabetes!
• Diabetics and Compression Socks
• Blood Sugar Levels and the Type of Fruit to Eat!

No Comments »

No comments yet.

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Leave a comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.