India has one of the largest numbers of people with diabetes in the world, and many of them do not know it yet. Type 2 diabetes can cause no symptoms for years while it quietly affects the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves. A simple blood test finds it early, often while it can still be reversed.
The three tests
- Fasting blood sugar measures sugar after at least 8 hours without food.
- PP (post-prandial) blood sugar measures sugar 2 hours after a meal, counted from the first bite. Your booking tells you how to time it.
- HbA1c shows your average sugar over the last two to three months. It needs no fasting, and a single day's meals do not change it.
The numbers doctors use
- Fasting sugar: below 100 mg/dL is normal, 100 to 125 is prediabetes, and 126 or above suggests diabetes.
- PP sugar: below 140 mg/dL is normal, 140 to 199 is prediabetes, and 200 or above suggests diabetes.
- HbA1c: below 5.7% is normal, 5.7 to 6.4% is prediabetes, and 6.5% or above suggests diabetes.
A diagnosis is made by your doctor, usually after a repeat test, not from a single result.
Who should be checked
Every adult from the age of 30, and earlier if you have any of these:
- A parent, brother or sister with diabetes
- Extra weight, especially around the waist
- High blood pressure or high cholesterol
- PCOS, or diabetes during a past pregnancy
- Little physical activity
How often
- Normal results: every one to three years, more often if you have the risks above.
- Prediabetes: every year. This is the stage where walking, weight loss and less sugar and refined flour can bring the numbers back to normal.
- Diabetes: HbA1c every three to six months, as your doctor advises, to see how well treatment is working.
