Goals for Fasting Blood Sugar Levels in Type Two Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a disease that affects about 200 million people worldwide. It’s a chronic, lifelong illness that has no cure. With regular physical activity, a healthy diet and weight loss, you can maintain healthy blood sugar levels. In this article we’ll discuss goals for fasting blood sugar in type two diabetes. In addition, we’ll talk about common symptoms and causes of abnormal blood sugar. We will also discuss what you can do in order to have more normal fasting blood sugar readings.
Ideal Numbers to Shoot For
The goals for fasting blood sugar in type 2 diabetes are as follows. Keep in mind that fasting blood sugar means that you have not eaten anything eight hours before measuring your glucose. Morning blood sugar levels taken on a home glucose monitoring kit can serve as a means to obtaining your fasting blood sugar.
- The American Diabetes Association sets fasting blood sugar goals for diabetics between 80-120 mg/dL
- American College of Endocrinology and American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists recommends fasting blood sugar levels that are less than 110 mg/dL
Symptoms and Causes of Abnormal Blood Sugar
Fatigue is sometimes seen in people who have abnormally high blood sugar. However, people often mistake fatigue to be a symptom of something else. Difficulty concentrating is another symptom of high blood sugar, along with frequent urination and wounds that heal slowly. Often times, people with high blood sugar will have blurred vision. It may take months for a person’s vision to fully return to what it was after that person’s blood sugar normalizes. It is not uncommon for people with high blood sugar to have thirst and dry mouth or experience extreme hunger in some cases. High blood sugar in type 2 diabetes can be caused by infection, illness, skipping insulin doses, eating too many carbohydrates/calories in a meal or from decreased physical activity.
Low blood sugar can be more dangerous in people who are diabetic. Low blood sugar is often accompanied by nervousness. Sometimes blurred vision occurs and in severe cases a person can pass out. Skipping meals or taking too much insulin can cause low blood sugar in type 2 diabetes.
Ways to Maintain Normal Blood Sugar
Remember that the primary treatment for type 2 diabetes is exercise and diet. Ideally, this is how you should reach your goals for fasting blood sugar in type two diabetes. Of course, it isn’t possible for everyone to do this on their own, and that’s OK. This is why you should team up with your health care provider to meet your goals. Both your dietitian and your doctor can help you make lifestyle changes that will help you stay healthy. If necessary, you should take medicine that will help you meet your goals.
References
[1] Medline Plus: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000313.htm
[2] Aetna Inteli Health: https://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/:/35072/35074/360524.html?d=dmtContent
[3] Web MD: https://diabetes.webmd.com/diabetes-hyperglycemia
