Can a couple of weeks make much difference on a HbA1c

[trueblue]

I'm in the Army and the Doc wants to do full bloods check in about 2 weeks time when I am next in on day shifts. I got a pre D result about 2 yrs ago (42/43 mml) but have followed a lot of the advice on here got fitter and hoped for the best lol. I no longer eat Bread, rice, cereal, pasta etc and its sugar free drinks.

It is mainly to check cholesterol levels as he noticed on my file that I used to be on statins but he said we might as well do a full HbA1c and a full fasting test along with it.

I had done really well towards the end of last year and apart from a 2 week lay off there due to tonsillitis I have still kept up the gym and the odd run ,,, although it been more patchy of late as I try to get used to working a 4 on 4 off day and nights 12 hrs shift system since January.

I have pretty much kept to the diet ,(apart from the odd cheat meal ). My Dad passed away 2 months ago and I went through a bad couple of weeks where I was on the beer and quite stressed out and I am concerned that will have spoilt what might have been a decent test. Also I have no idea what the tonsillitis and a 10 day course of anti biotics might have done.

I know I am probably just being paranoid but I would really have liked my first check up to have been under normal circumstances as if I get a bad result I will have no idea if my condition is just gotten worse or if its all down to recent events. Also not sure how the Army will view a negative result. Can stress alone affect your levels??

Would putting it off for another 2 weeks make any difference ? Or is it true it will look at your recent levels over months rather than weeks,,, is it the more recent activity it picks up or the latter period or is it all relative ?

 

[trueblue]

sorry for all the questions by the way lol

 

[LittleGreyCat]

As far as I know HbA1c is a long term (8-12 weeks) measure although it is weighted a bit towards the last month.
This is why it is preferred for the checking of long term blood glucose control instead of the spot (fasting) reading used for diagnosis.
So you will appreciate that it is not something that you can fix by a few days of "being good".

Stress can make diabetes control worse in the short term, as can illness.
The best thing is to try and not worry about it because there isn't really anything you can do about it before the test.
If you have been generally good on diet and exercise then a blip will be just that - a blip.

Have you considered testing your blood glucose levels?
This can give you a good feel for how well you are doing and make the HbA1c test results less of a surprise.
You get to fix things straight away instead of having to wait six months or more.

 

[kateincornwall]

As far as I understand, the HbA1c is a complex test which looks at red blood cell activity from the past 8-12 weeks , giving a mean average re blood sugar , there is more info on this test on the home page . In answer to your question , yes, a couple of weeks therefore can make a difference to the results of most BS tests and so, if it doesn't cause any problems for you , it might be an idea to get yourself back on the wagon smartish and have your test in a couple of weeks , wish you good luck with it and don't worry about the questions

 

[trueblue]

Yeh been thinking about it,,, my mum has said that I can have my dads meter now as long as I dont become obsessed with it,, and tbh thats what put me off until now. If the result is bad then I think I will

 

[trueblue]

Well,,, will be back on the wagon after todays big match rangers v motherwell SPL play off final lol,, back in the gym tom and going for a 8 mile run on tuesday. I can probably cut down 4 or 5 lbs by test time and I am still just within BMI right now.

Been reading online that stress levels can affect your levels so hopefully the Doc will be quite understanding of that,, he is in the know about my past couple of months anyway. He will probably just set me for another retest in a few months if the result is dodgy ,, hopefully.