Diabetes Test To Screen Diabetes

Diabetes Test: Finger

The Preliminary Diabetes Test

There are about 20 million adults and children in the United States suffering from diabetes and almost 6 million of them do not know that they are suffering from it. Diabetes has very few symptoms and it won't show up until it is in the advance stage. In order to ascertain your risk to this chronic disease, you need to take a preliminary diabetes test. This preliminary test consists of a series of questionnaire to evaluate your risk factor towards diabetes. The questions asked would be:

Your age group
Your height and weight
Do you frequently do physical exercise?
Do your siblings (brothers and sisters) have diabetes?
Do you have parents having diabetes?

If your preliminary evaluation suggests that you have a higher risk to diabetes, you will be advised to undergo a full diabetes test.

Fasting Plasma Glucose Test

The recommended diabetes test for type 2 diabetes is fasting plasma glucose test. A blood sample is extracted from the patient after overnight fasting (at least 8 hours) to determine the blood glucose level. The reason why the patient is required to fast in this diabetes test is to eliminate sugar due to food intake. If your blood glucose level is 80 to 110 mg/dl, you are considered normal. A pre-diabetes condition is when your blood glucose level is above 110 mg/dl but below 125 mg/dl. If your diabetes test result indicates a value higher than 125 mg/dl, you have diabetes and will be required to undergo a second test in the future to confirm the result.

The Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1C) Diabetes Test

Another diabetes test that is carried on suspected diabetes cases is the hemoglobin A1C test. The higher the glucose level in the blood, the higher would be the hemoglobin A1C. Since the lifespan of red blood cells is only 8 to 12 weeks, measuring the hemoglobin A1C will indicate the blood glucose level over the same 8 to 12 week period. A normal person will have a hemoglobin A1c of around 3.5% to 5.5%. Anything above 6.5% is considered diabetes. Currently the hemoglobin A1C is the best diabetes test available.

Conclusion

It is important to detect diabetes in the early stages to avoid complications from other diseases related to it. If you have symptoms of diabetes, consult your doctor immediately and get them to perform the diabetes test as soon as possible. If you do not show signs of diabetes but the preliminary diabetes test indicates that you have high risk, you should get your doctor to do the test.

Recommended Reading
	Diabetes Guide. A Comprehensive Guide To Beating Diabetes - Dramatically Improve Your Blood Sugar Control, Reduce And Eliminate Your Need For Insulin Shots.
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