Knowing the true significance behind blood sugar level readings and what high or low blood sugar can do to your body is essential for diabetes management. Having diabetes means that you have persistently elevated blood sugar levels. Over time, high sugar levels damage the body and can lead to multiple health problems associated with diabetes.
Full Answer
Why is blood sugar testing important?
Blood sugar testing: Why, when and how. Blood sugar testing is an important part of diabetes care. Find out when to test your blood sugar level, how to use a testing meter and more. If you have diabetes, self-testing your blood sugar (blood glucose) can be an important tool in managing your treatment plan and preventing diabetes complications.
What is a blood sugar target?
A blood sugar target is the individual blood sugar range you try to reach as much as possible. Your health care team may also use the term goal. People who have diabetes have blood sugar targets for different times of the day.
Who should aim for slightly higher or lower blood sugar targets?
For example, Mayo Clinic generally recommends that healthy adults under 60 can aim for slightly lower blood sugar targets. Some people will have slightly higher blood sugar goals, including people who: Have other medical conditions, such as heart, lung or kidney disease
What happens to your blood sugar when you have an illness?
Raised blood glucose during acute illness and risk of subsequent diabetes. They are released as part of the physiological ”stress” response to the severe illness or trauma. With effective treatment of the illness/trauma, counter-regulatory hormone release ceases, hyperglycemia resolves, and blood glucose soon returns to normal.
Why it is important for your blood sugar levels to be regulated?
It's important to keep your blood sugar levels in your target range as much as possible to help prevent or delay long-term, serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease. Staying in your target range can also help improve your energy and mood.
Why is treating hypoglycemia important?
Severe untreated hypoglycemia can cause a significant economic and personal burden, therefore identification and prevention of hypoglycemia can reduce diabetes burden by prevention of hypoglycemia complications.
Why is the prevention and early detection of diabetes so important?
If uncontrolled, diabetes can damage your heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys, and nerves. This is why it is so important to get screened for diabetes and take steps to prevent it if you are identified to be at increased risk. Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood sugar, or glucose, is too high.
How do you manage acute hyperglycemia?
TreatmentGet physical. Regular exercise is often an effective way to control your blood sugar. ... Take your medication as directed. ... Follow your diabetes eating plan. ... Check your blood sugar. ... Adjust your insulin doses to control hyperglycemia.
How will you recognize a patient who is having hypoglycemia?
Initial signs and symptoms of diabetic hypoglycemia include: Looking pale (pallor) Shakiness. Dizziness or lightheadedness.
What is diabetes and why is it important?
With diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use it as well as it should. Diabetes is a chronic (long-lasting) health condition that affects how your body turns food into energy. Most of the food you eat is broken down into sugar (also called glucose) and released into your bloodstream.
What are the ADA recommendations for diabetes testing guidelines?
The ADA recommends that testing should begin at age 45 for all people. Testing for prediabetes and risk for future diabetes in asymptomatic people should be considered in adults of any age who are overweight and who have one or more additional risk factors for diabetes.
Why is it important to know about type 2 diabetes?
It can lead to serious complications if unchecked If it's left undiagnosed and untreated for too long, type 2 diabetes can lead to life-threatening complications. The same is true for people who neglect to manage their diabetes properly.
What is the condition where the body produces enough insulin but is unable to use it effectively?
Many Type 2 diabetics have a condition called insulin resistance, where the body produces sufficient insulin but is unable to use it effectively. Both genetic susceptibility and environmental factors play a role in causing Type 2 diabetes, although being overweight is strongly linked to. its development.
Where does glucose come from?
The glucose can come from food or the liver, the latter of which makes and stores glucose by metabolizing stored glycogen into glucose when insulin levels are low. Glucagon can also be administered as a medication in the prehospital setting to have the opposite effect of insulin.
What does 5.7 mean in blood work?
The disorder is generally formally diagnosed when a marker called glycated hemoglobin (Hemoglobin A1C) becomes elevated above normal levels of 4—7. Levels of 5.7—6.4 indicate a condition called prediabetes and treatment with oral hypoglycemic agents often begins with a reading of 6 or higher. Prediabetes.
What are the complications of diabetes?
Complications. The risk of complications from diabetes increases the longer a person has diabetes, and rises dramatically when blood sugar isn’t controlled, particularly over a period of time. Neuropathy. The presence of excess glucose in the bloodstream can damage capillaries, particularly in the legs.
What percentage of diabetics have neuropathy?
Damage to the nerves in the feet is common and can result in inability to recover from cuts or blisters, as well as frequent infections. About 60—70% of patients with diabetes have mild to severe neuropathies. Amputation. More than 60% of non-traumatic lower-limb amputations occur in diabetic patients.
Is elevated glucose a medical emergency?
Although elevated blood glucose is not a medical emergency in and of itself, elevated BGl in the setting of ketoacidosis is. The mortality rate ranges from 9—14%. Hyperglycemia is a serious complication of diabetes that’s generally seen in patients who are insulin dependent.
Is diabetes a mental illness?
Diabetes may present for the first time in previously diagnosed adults or children who have an altered mental status. Risk factors for diabetes include being an overweight adult over the age of 40 and a lack of physical activity. For Type 1 diabetes, family history of the disease plays a role.
Why is it important to treat diabetes early?
Treating diabetes early is important because it puts patients’ health on a trajectory for the rest of their lives. Long-term, high blood sugars caused by uncontrolled diabetes cause inflammation and changes at the cellular level, as the body produces less insulin and struggles to process excess glucose in the bloodstream.
What is the A1C of a diabetic?
A1C is a common measure of blood sugar control; the lower the HbA 1C value, the better. (National medical organizations typically say an HbA 1C between 6.5 and 7 percent is a healthy target for most diabetics .)
How long does it take for a diabetic to take a medication?
In that study, 40 percent of patients with hypertension and diabetes said they were less likely to take a medication when told it could take up to 10 years before they would benefit from it. Fortunately, early diagnosis may be the best opportunity to intervene.
Is it important to control blood sugar?
While it’s always important to maintain healthy blood sugar levels, new research shows that better control during the first year can reduce the future risk for complications, including kidney disease, eye disease, stroke, heart failure and poor circulation to the limbs. A new study, led by Neda Laiteerapong, MD, ...
Why is blood sugar testing important?
Blood sugar testing is an important part of diabetes care. Find out when to test your blood sugar, how to use a blood sugar meter and more. By Mayo Clinic Staff. If you have diabetes, self-testing your blood sugar (blood glucose) can be an important tool in managing your diabetes and preventing complications.
What is blood sugar testing?
Blood sugar testing provides useful information for diabetes management. It can help you: Monitor the effect of diabetes medications on blood sugar levels. Identify blood sugar levels that are high or low. Track your progress in reaching your overall treatment goals. Learn how diet and exercise affect blood sugar levels.
How often do you need a glucose monitor?
A continuous glucose monitor (CGM) is a device that measures your blood sugar every few minutes using a sensor inserted under the skin. People with diabetes, particularly those with type 1 diabetes, may also choose to use CGMs. These devices measure your blood sugar every few minutes using a sensor inserted under the skin.
What is the recommended blood sugar level for diabetics?
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) generally recommends the following target blood sugar levels: Between 80 and 130 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or 4.4 to 7.2 millimoles per liter (mmol/L) before meals.
How to check blood sugar with a meter?
Insert a test strip into your meter. Prick the side of your fingertip with the needle (lancet) provided with your test kit. Touch and hold the edge of the test strip to the drop of blood. The meter will display your blood sugar level on a screen after a few seconds.
What to do if you get results that don't fall within the range of your target goals?
If you manually log your results, record the date, time, test results, medication and dose, and diet and exercise information. Bring your record of results with you to your doctor's appointments. Talk to your doctor about what steps to take if you get results that don't fall within the range of your target goals.
Do you need a blood sugar meter for CGM?
The meter measures the amount of sugar in a small sample of blood, usually from your fingertip, that you place on a disposable test strip. Even if you use a CGM, you'll still need a blood sugar meter to calibrate your CGM device daily. Your doctor or diabetes educator can recommend an appropriate device for you.
Why is hyperglycemia a sign of diabetes?
In some cases this hyperglycemia is due to previously diagnosed type 1 or type 2 diabetes, but for the majority it is a consequence of the stress associated with illness/trauma. This so-called ”stress hyperglycemia” results from release of counter-regulatory hormones (glucagon, cortisol, epinephrine) that oppose the action of insulin.
Is type 2 diabetes risk higher for males or females?
At every level of glucose concentration the risk was found to be higher for males than for females. Risk was higher for a given glucose concentration among those aged 50-69 years but lower for those younger and older than this. Taking gender and age into account, highest risk of type 2 diabetes occurring during the following 3 years was found ...
Does stress hyperglycemia cause blood sugar to increase?
With effective treatment of the illness/trauma, counter-regulatory hormone release ceases, hyperglycemia resolves, and blood glucose soon returns to normal. For some patients with apparent ”stress hyperglycemia”, the increase in glucose concentration, or at least part of the increase, may be due to incipient type 2 diabetes that will, ...
What is the target blood sugar?
A blood sugar target is the range you try to reach as much as possible. These are typical targets: Before a meal: 80 to 130 mg/dL. Two hours after the start of a meal: Less than 180 mg/dL. Your blood sugar targets may be different depending on your age, any additional health problems you have, and other factors.
How to control high blood sugar?
If your blood sugar is often high, your doctor may change how much medicine you take or when you take it. Follow your diabetes meal plan. Ask your doctor or dietitian for help if you’re having trouble sticking to it. Check your blood sugar as directed by your doctor.
How do you know if you have low blood sugar?
Signs of low blood sugar are different for everyone. Common symptoms include: Shaking. Sweating. Nervousness or anxiety. Irritability or confusion. Dizziness. Hunger. Know what your individual symptoms are so you can catch low blood sugar early and treat it.
How to check blood sugar?
How can I check my blood sugar? Use a blood sugar meter (also called a glucometer) or a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) to check your blood sugar. A blood sugar meter measures the amount of sugar in a small sample of blood, usually from your fingertip.
How to get blood sugar to 70?
Drink four ounces of fruit juice. Drink four ounces of regular soda, not diet soda. Eat four pieces of hard candy. Wait for 15 minutes and then check your blood sugar again. Do one of the above treatments again until your blood sugar is 70 mg/dL or above and eat a snack if your next meal is an hour or more away.
Why is it important to monitor your A1C?
It’s important to keep your blood sugar levels in your target range as much as possible to help prevent or delay long-term, serious health problems , such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease. Staying in your target range can also help improve your energy and mood.
Can you eat carbs if you have diabetes?
You can still eat carbs if you have diabetes. The amount you can have and stay in your target blood sugar range depends on your age, weight, activity level, and other factors. Counting carbs in foods and drinks is an important tool for managing blood sugar levels.