Every healthy person is advised to check from time to time to see if his sugar is normal. The blood glucose level is measured by comparing its concentration and the necessary expenditure on the work of internal organs. If sugar is too high, this condition is called hyperglycemia, and if too low, hypoglycemia.
There are several units for measuring blood sugar. They may vary in different countries, in different medical institutions can also use one or another option.
Molecular weight measurement
The unit of measurement of blood sugar in Russia and many other countries is mmol / L. The designation is deciphered as millimole per liter. This indicator is obtained based on the molecular weight of glucose and the approximate volume of circulating blood.
Generally accepted standards
If blood is taken from a finger, the normal blood glucose is 3.2 - 5.5 mmol / L. When the result is higher, then this is hyperglycemia. But this does not mean that a person has diabetes. Going beyond the bounds happens in healthy people. Factors affecting the increase in blood sugar can be severe stress, adrenaline rush, a large amount of sweets.
But with a deviation from the norm, it is always recommended to conduct a study again and visit an endocrinologist.
If the indicators are lower than 3.2 mmol / l, then you must also visit a doctor. Such conditions can lead to fainting. If a person has a very low blood sugar, he needs to eat food that contains fast carbohydrates, or drink juice.
If a person suffers from diabetes, for him the norms shift. On an empty stomach, the amount of millimole per liter should be 5.6. Often this indicator is obtained with the help of insulin or sugar-lowering tablets. During the day before meals, it is considered the norm of a reading of 3.6-7.1 mmol / L. When glucose levels are difficult to control, it is advisable to try to keep them within 9.5 mmol / L.
At night, good indications for diabetics - 5.6 - 7.8 mmol / L.
If the analysis was taken from a vein, the units of blood sugar will be the same, but the norms are slightly different. Due to the physiological characteristics of a person, the norms for venous blood are 10-12% higher than for capillary blood.
Molecular weight measurement and the designation mmol / L are world standards, but some countries prefer a different method.
Weight measurement
The common unit for measuring blood sugar in America is mg / dl. This method measures how many milligrams of glucose is contained in a deciliter of blood.
In the countries of the USSR there used to be the same method of determination, only the result was indicated as mg%.
The unit of measurement of blood sugar in Europe is often taken mg / dl. Sometimes both values are used equally.
Norms in weight measurement
If the unit of blood sugar in the analyzes is taken in weight measurement, then the fasting rate is 64 -105 mg / dl.
After 2 hours after breakfast, lunch or dinner, where there was a large amount of carbohydrates, normal values are considered to be from 120 to 140 mg / dl.
When analyzing, it is always worth considering factors that can distort the result. The important thing is how the blood was taken, what the patient ate before the analysis, what time the blood is taken and much more.
Which measurement method is better to use?
Since there is no common standard for units for measuring blood sugar levels, the method that is generally accepted in a given country is usually used. Sometimes, for diabetic products and related texts, data is provided in two systems. But if this is not the case, then any person can figure out the necessary value by translation.
How to translate the testimony?
There is a simple method for converting blood sugar units from one system to another.
The number in mmol / L is multiplied by 18.02 using a calculator. This is a conversion factor based on the molecular weight of glucose. Thus, 6 mmol / L is the same value as 109.2 mg / dl.
To translate in the reverse order, the number in the weight dimension is divided by 18.02.
There are special tables and converters on the Internet that will help you make a translation without a calculator.
Measurement of glycated hemoglobin
In 2011, a new diabetes diagnostic technique was launched. To detect the disease, it is not the sugar reading that is currently being measured, but the level of glycated hemoglobin.
This method helps to determine how much sugar the patient had for a given time (for example, a month or three).
Glycated hemoglobin is obtained from a compound of glucose and hemoglobin. It is in the body of every person, but in diabetics, the indicators will be much higher.
The violation of the norm and the indicator of the disease is HbA1 above 6.5 percent, which is 48 mmol / mol.
If a person is healthy, his glycated hemoglobin will not exceed 42 mmol / mol (6.0 percent).
The measuring device is a glucometer
It is most reliable to pass tests in the laboratory, but the patient needs to know his sugar level at least 2 times a day. For this purpose, hand-held handheld devices, glucometers, were invented.
It is important which unit of blood sugar is installed in the device. It depends on the country in which it was made. Some models have a selection option. You can decide for yourself in mmol / l and mg / dl you will measure sugar. For those traveling, it may be convenient not to transfer data from one unit to another.
Criteria for choosing a glucometer:
- How reliable is it.
- Is the measurement error high?
- The unit used to measure blood sugar.
- Is there a choice between mmol / l and mg / dl.
In order for the data to be accurate, you need to wash your hands with soap before measuring. It is necessary to monitor the device - calibrate, carry out control measurements, replace the batteries.
It is important that your analyzer works correctly. Periodic calibration, replacement of batteries or accumulator, control measurements using a special fluid are required.
If the appliance falls, it must also be checked before use.
The frequency of glucose measurements
It is enough for healthy people to take tests every six months. Especially this recommendation should pay attention to people at risk. Overweight, inactive, combined with poor heredity can serve as factors in the development of the disease.
Those who already have an established diagnosis measure sugar several times daily.
In the first type of diabetes, measurements are taken four times. If the condition is unstable, the glucose level jumps a lot, sometimes you have to take blood for analysis 6-10 times a day.
For the second type of diabetes, it is recommended to use the meter twice - in the morning and at lunchtime.
What time do blood sugar measurements take?
Sugar is usually measured in the morning on an empty stomach. If you eat, the glucose levels will increase, and the analysis will need to be taken again.
During the day, sugar is measured 2 hours after breakfast, lunch or dinner. By this time, in a healthy person, the indicators are already returning to normal and amount to 4.4-7.8 mmol / L or 88-156 mg%.
Throughout the day, glucose levels constantly fluctuate and directly depend on the food that a person takes. Foods rich in carbohydrates are especially affected.
Recommendations for maintaining normal sugar
To maintain normal sugar levels, it’s important to follow these tips:
- Healthy eating
- Maintaining a balance in the content of proteins, carbohydrates and fats.
- The use of large amounts of fiber, fruits, raw vegetables.
- Fats are better to eat those that are healthy and safe: coconut and olive oils, nuts, avocados.
- It is better to refuse sugar altogether; sweeteners are also not an option. Healthy alternatives to sweeteners are honey, dried fruits, Jerusalem artichoke syrup and agave.
- Do not eat white wheat flour. Now there are many useful and tasty alternatives. For example, coconut and almond flour.
- No more than three teaspoons of sweet per day and only natural sweets.
- Alcohol and packaged fruit juices should be discarded.
- Regular physical activity.
- Short-term exercises help muscle tissue to take more glucose and use it for energy.
- Long-term stress makes cells more sensitive to insulin.
- Management of emotions.
- Sugar rises greatly from constant stresses, so you should avoid them as much as possible.
- From stress, hunger arises, pulls on sweets, do not succumb to such conditions.
- To relieve stress, yoga, meditation, relaxation, walking, chatting with friends, baths with essential oils are recommended.
- Early rebounds and rises contribute to recovery.
- Excessive light and night sounds prevent the body from getting a good rest, we must strive to shield ourselves from everything that disturbs peace.
- Lack of sleep can contribute to the release of appetite hormones.
- Sleep at the wrong time, poor sleep disrupts insulin secretion.
- A normal sleep to maintain sugar at the proper level is 7-9 hours.