Diabetes Blood Testing

Unfortunately, there are still people who do not yet even know they have diabetes

. There are some easy steps that you can take in order to find out. This is extremely important for your health. So if you think you may have diabetes, it is vital to do the right tests. Having annual check-ups is a must, so speak with your doctor. The tests are available at just about any clinic. These tests will help determine the amount of sugar (glucose) in your blood, so you can order an annual FBS (which stands for Fasting Blood Sugar), an OGTT (meaning Oral Glucose Tolerance Test) and a few other tests that will help you determine if you suffer (or about to suffer) from diabetes. Read on further and find out what these tests actually mean and what symptoms (of high blood sugar levels) a diabetes patient actually has.

The first test, the FBS or Fasting Blood Sugar test can determine exactly what its name suggests: the amount of sugar (glucose) in your blood. If the results tell you that you have between 72 - 99 mg/dl (or 4 5.5 mmol/l), then there is no real reason to worry as these are normal results. To put it more simply, if you get these values, your blood sugar is normal. However, you may get slightly higher values between 100 -126 mg/dl (5.6 - 7 mmol/l). This means that you will have been diagnosed with pre-diabetes. This means that you have sugar (glucose) in your blood above normal and if you leave this untreated, it can evolve into Type 2 diabetes. There are also individuals in which this test will give a value above 126 mg/dl (7 mmol/l). In these cases the person is almost surely likely to be suffering from Type 2 diabetes and seeking immediate medical help is advised. To make sure a correct diagnosis is made, doctors advise taking the test twice, on two different occasions, to make sure that both tests give th

e same blood glucose values so a correct diagnosis can be made.

The second type of test we mentioned is the OGTT (Oral Glucose Tolerance Test). It is basically an oral glucose test in which you will be given a small amount of sugar (glucose) for you to drink. After two hours, a sample of your blood is collected and analyzed in order to check your blood glucose level. Anything above 140 mg/dl (7.7 mmol/l) is not considered a normal value, meaning that you have an unhealthy glucose tolerance and this could be a clear sign of pre-diabetes. In some other cases the results show a value of over 200 mg/dl (11 mmol/l). In these cases the patient is diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes can be a very serious and dangerous disease, especially if you are already suffering from other chronic diseases. It can be very dangerous in many cases, so changes in diet, lifestyle, undertaking exercise, or taking the right medication is a must!

by: Michael Hutch

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