Diagnosis of diabetes

lindaswinburn

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
I saw my doctor about getting my bloods done. Since I was on long term steroids my blood sugars have been slowly climbing. My fasting sugars are usually between 5.4 and 5.9 mmols but after a meal it can be anything between 7 and 9.6. I did have a one off of13. My GP has made me an appointment to have my bloods checked but he said my sugar would need to be over 13 to be confirmed diabetes. I think he is wrong. I would say over 7.5 on a number if occasions. I just have to wait and see what my hbA1c is. I asked him if they come back normal could I have a glucose tolerance test. What figure would others say would confirm diabetes (in glucose and hbA1c?
 

daddys1

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,353
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi & welcome @lindaswinburn,

Your fasting sugars numbers are actually pretty good lots on here would welcome numbers like that, but the HbA1c result is usually the test fore diabetes. A HbA1c of 48, that's an average of your sugars over the last 2/3 months is the magic figure for diagnosis. Anywhere from a HbA1c of 42 is Pre diabetic.

I've not heard of the over 13 figure!

I was diagnosed as diabetic with an HbA1c of 46 because I had fasting's of 8.3 & 9.2 on 2 occasions. I argued that I did not want to be diagnosed as such but even though I was borderline, I now do get the benefits of all the test diabetics get.

Have you had a long list of helpful advice from daisy1? if not I will tag her for you.

Neil :)
 
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Bluetit1802

Legend
Messages
25,215
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
I saw my doctor about getting my bloods done. Since I was on long term steroids my blood sugars have been slowly climbing. My fasting sugars are usually between 5.4 and 5.9 mmols but after a meal it can be anything between 7 and 9.6. I did have a one off of13. My GP has made me an appointment to have my bloods checked but he said my sugar would need to be over 13 to be confirmed diabetes. I think he is wrong. I would say over 7.5 on a number if occasions. I just have to wait and see what my hbA1c is. I asked him if they come back normal could I have a glucose tolerance test. What figure would others say would confirm diabetes (in glucose and hbA1c?

Fasting levels of 5.4 to 5.9 aren't really diabetic but bordering on it. 7 is considered diabetic (on a venous test, not on a finger prick test). After meals it depends what you ate, what you were before you ate, and how long after you ate that you tested. On a fasting venous glucose test, 7 is the cut off. On an HbA1c test 48 is the cut off.

Either you misheard your doctor when he said 13, or he is mistaken. The figure 13 doesn't come in to it at all.

Wait and see what your HbA1c is, and in the meantime try not to worry.
 

Lazybones

Well-Known Member
Messages
397
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Steroids are known to interfere and effect blood glucose levels. Your readings are fine already and probably already elevated somewhat by the Steroids that you are already taking.
It would probably be the wrong thing to do in your attempting to diagnose whether you have diabetes or not, until you are taken off the Steroids for several months, as this would effect your long term HbA1c reading.
 

lindaswinburn

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
Thank you for your help. I have not been on steroids for months now, so was hoping my glucose would return to normal. I have had my bloods checked, waiting for the result. If borderline doctor will do a glucose tolerance test as my sugars only seem to be raised after food or sugary drinks.
 

daisy1

Legend
Messages
26,457
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Cruelty towards animals.
@lindaswinburn

I'm here... Hello Linda and welcome to the forum :)

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you need and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 130,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
 

Paul59

Well-Known Member
Messages
954
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Thank you for your help. I have not been on steroids for months now, so was hoping my glucose would return to normal. I have had my bloods checked, waiting for the result. If borderline doctor will do a glucose tolerance test as my sugars only seem to be raised after food or sugary drinks.
Anybodies sugar is raised after taking sugar, it's normal.
 

lindaswinburn

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
Thank you for that information. That explains why my sugar was 9 an hour after eating a fruit scone. I will watch my carbohydrates, especially white.
 

Bluetit1802

Legend
Messages
25,215
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
Thank you for that information. That explains why my sugar was 9 an hour after eating a fruit scone. I will watch my carbohydrates, especially white.

watch the fruit too! It is full of fructose, which is sugar by any other name, and especially dried fruits such as those in your scone.