Fasting blood sugar is how much sugar you have in your blood after not eating for at least 8 hours. It shows how likely you are to get diabetes or other health problems. The American Diabetes Association says that people who don’t have diabetes should have fasting blood sugar levels between 70-99 mg/dL1. If your fasting blood sugar level is more than this, you might have prediabetes or diabetes1.
This is what fasting blood sugar levels mean:
- Below 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L): Normal
- 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L): Prediabetes
- Above 126 mg/dL (7 mmol/L): Diabetes
Fasting blood sugar levels can change because of many things, like what you eat, what medicine you take, how much you move, how stressed you are, if you are sick, or if your hormones change. To keep your fasting blood sugar levels in the normal range, you need to live a healthy life that includes eating well, being active, taking your medicine (if you have any), and checking your blood sugar often2.
If you have diabetes, your doctor may tell you a different range for your fasting blood sugar levels, based on your age, health, and treatment. You should talk to your doctor and diabetes team to make your own goals and change your plan as needed3.
Fasting blood sugar levels are one of the ways to find out if you have diabetes, along with other tests like oral glucose tolerance test, hemoglobin A1c test, and random blood sugar test. If you feel like you have high blood sugar, such as being thirsty, peeing a lot, having a headache, or having trouble focusing, you should go to your doctor and get tested right away.
High blood sugar levels, especially if they happen a lot or for a long time, can hurt your eyes, kidneys, nerves, heart, and blood vessels. So, it is very important to keep your blood sugar levels under control and avoid or delay these problems.
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