Diabetes: What you need to know
Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your body’s A1C (blood sugar) levels are too high. This is caused by the body’s inability to produce sufficient insulin to break down the glucose in your bloodstream.
What is the Difference Between Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes?
There are two main kinds of diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2. With Type 1 diabetes, your body doesn’t make insulin at all. Type 1 is usually diagnosed in childhood or early adulthood. Anyone with Type 1 diabetes must take insulin daily. Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, is characterized by the body’s inability to make sufficient insulin.
Understanding A1C Levels
What is a Hemoglobin test (A1C for short)?
A1C is a specific protein in the red blood cells (RBCs) that transports most of the oxygen in the blood. When RBCs get exposed to glucose (sugar), some attach to the A1C in a process called glycation. What the test measures is how much glycation of the sugar has happened through the RBCs lifecycle.
Why is it important?
The measurement of A1C gives the physician and patient very useful information about the patient’s health not just on the day the blood is tested but for the two to three months before, as well. A prolong period of high levels can damage blood vessels and the nerves controlling the heart and blood vessels potentially leading to heart disease or other medical conditions. An A1c over 5.7 is indicative for the start of a diabetes diagnosis and control is measured as the A1c increases.
How are the levels determined?
A1C test measure the percentage of hemoglobin proteins in the blood that are coated with sugar. A1C tests provides the average blood sugar that has floated through the body in the past two to three months. This is important as it provides a more accurate picture than a simple blood sugar level, which only tells a physician how much sugar is in the system at a specific point in time. A1C results are broken into three buckets:
Continuously measuring A1C levels every three to six months for type 2 Diabetes is crucial as there’s a direct relationship to risks of complications, such as diabetic eye disease and chronic kidney disease. It allows the physician to evaluate long-term trends in average blood glucose, which tells them whether changes need to be made to get better control of blood sugar levels.
What can be done to lower A1C Levels?
A1C levels can be lowered by different means, such as:
A1C is a specific protein in the red blood cells (RBCs) that transports most of the oxygen in the blood. When RBCs get exposed to glucose (sugar), some attach to the A1C in a process called glycation. What the test measures is how much glycation of the sugar has happened through the RBCs lifecycle.
Why is it important?
The measurement of A1C gives the physician and patient very useful information about the patient’s health not just on the day the blood is tested but for the two to three months before, as well. A prolong period of high levels can damage blood vessels and the nerves controlling the heart and blood vessels potentially leading to heart disease or other medical conditions. An A1c over 5.7 is indicative for the start of a diabetes diagnosis and control is measured as the A1c increases.
How are the levels determined?
A1C test measure the percentage of hemoglobin proteins in the blood that are coated with sugar. A1C tests provides the average blood sugar that has floated through the body in the past two to three months. This is important as it provides a more accurate picture than a simple blood sugar level, which only tells a physician how much sugar is in the system at a specific point in time. A1C results are broken into three buckets:
- Normal: below 5.7%
- Prediabetes: 5.7% to 6.4%
- Diabetes: 6.5% or above
Continuously measuring A1C levels every three to six months for type 2 Diabetes is crucial as there’s a direct relationship to risks of complications, such as diabetic eye disease and chronic kidney disease. It allows the physician to evaluate long-term trends in average blood glucose, which tells them whether changes need to be made to get better control of blood sugar levels.
What can be done to lower A1C Levels?
A1C levels can be lowered by different means, such as:
- Diet modification
- Increase exercise
- Increase protein absorption
- Reduce stress levels
- Improve sleeping patterns
- Medication changes