Diabetes Blood Sugar Levels
Doctors advise people who are suffering from diabetes to check their blood sugar level regularly. This is very important, as a diabetic person should try to maintain blood sugar level between 70 to 120 mg/dl. After a meal, the blood sugar level may rise to 140 mg/dl. Blood sugar also commonly known as blood glucose is checked two hours before and after a meal.
The blood sugar level can be determined by pricking a finger, and placing the drop of blood on a glucose meter, which reads the value. Nowadays, many glucose meters are freely available in the market. People with diabetes carry them around and check their blood glucose regularly.
Accu-Check Advantage, One Touch Ultra, Sure Step and Free Style are the popularly available blood sugar or glucose meters that diabetic people as well as physicians check glucose. Thanks to digital technology, these meters are quite small and can easily carried in purses and pockets. Each type of meter has its own advantages and disadvantages. Some require a tiny drop of blood, others require more. Some give a fast readout others take a while. Some give a digital display others an analog display.
It's really up to you to decide, which type of meter is suitable. The test results help the patient decide when to take their medications, exercise, or control their diet. How to monitor and check blood sugar is what the doctor will tell you, and also tell you what to do in case the blood sugar exceeds the limits.
Diabetic patients are advised to check their blood sugar level three or four times a day and for them, the glucose meters also called finger sticks are good enough to conduct these tests. If the blood sugar is well controlled, no complications will occur.
Some renowned sportsmen are diabetic, but have been very active in their field. They have been able to achieve this by closely monitoring their blood sugar level, and exercising regularly and controlling their diet strictly.
The commonly set blood sugar levels are 80 to 120 fasting, or two hours before taking a meal, and 100 to 160 after taking a meal and 100 to 140 before going to bed at night. Overall, the physicians can best suggest a diabetic about the optimal blood sugar levels that he/she needs to maintain. Blood sugar levels and the type of diabetes a patient is suffering from is what will guide the physician in prescribing medications, and maintaining his/her blood sugar level. One rule cannot apply to everyone who has diabetes and has to be determined on an individual basis.
Physicians ask diabetic patients to check their blood sugar at regular intervals, and to maintain a daily chart of their blood sugar levels. When a patient goes for a checkup to the physician, they should take the chart along, as it helps the physician in examining the blood sugar history. Blood sugar can and must be controlled. With a little self-discipline, diabetics can lead a normal life.
- Following an appropriate meal plan
- Frequent self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG)
- Administering insulin injections and knowing how to adjust the doses depending on results of SMBG
- Controlling/treating hypoglycemia
- Adding or maintaining an appropriate level of physical activity
|
