Diabetes Term Question

[UltiMica06]

OK...sorry I'm a Newb apparently...:D

I dont understand people when they post a Level of 5.4 & 4. so & so...

Becuz I go by whats on my MOniter ALL I know is that I am suppose to be between 90-130 readings...

How do u convert 90-130 into the 5. so and so number????

And also what is Avrage A1C?????

and BG???

Thanks a lot!.....I stop asking stipid Q's once I figure what everybody means....lol

[foxl]

Okay if the poster is outside the US, they are using mmol? And there is a converter, to the right side of the page under New Posts ...

If they are in the US you could be seeing A1c's which is % glycation of hemoglobin ...

[Subby]

BG = blood glucose or blood sugar

Average of A1c - probably just the normal meaning of average, so if someone had A1cs of 5.5, 6 and 6.5 in the last 9 months, the average would be 6. It's not a common point to consider, as far as I know.

Here's a link to a stickied post that can be found at the start of the "Diabetes" forum, it will help with other terms or acronyms you come across.

http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/diabetes/28438-acronyms.html

[notme]

I am thinking you are confused about mmol/L to mg/dL. The U.S. uses mg/dL on their meters and most of the rest of the wold uses mmol/L. You can multiply a reading of 5.5 x's 18 to get a reading of 99 or you can use this converter that DF provides under tools. Blood Glucose Unit Converter (http://www.diabetesforums.com/forum/converters/bgunit.php)

[mmissanne]

The postings your referring to of 5.5, 4 & so on are relating to an individuals A1c. This is test giving when you are first diagnosed with diabetes from your doctor. It measures what your blood sugar levels have been within a 3 month duration.

Every three months your doctor will or should test your A1c to see if your blood sugar levels has been stable or consistent.

The meter that you use to test you own blood sugar is totally different from an A1c. And your right it will read numbers like 90, 150 etc....

The reason people post there A1c is because the numbers should be decreasing over a period of time. For example: If your A1c was 9.9 when you were diagnosed you will want to see that number decline after a period of time. Your goal should be below 7. Numbers below that range will indicate that your blood glucose (BG) is under control. This is a good thing so individuals are proud to post them.

Please make sure when you get your labs drawn that you ask for a copy of the results so that you can keep up with your A1c yourself. Most importantly ask your Doctor what you current A1c is. Your intital to this information. :)

[sumi]

Listen to Nancy. I, living in Canada, do not have my bg moniter set up like you do. A typical number for me before eating dinner would be 5.2. If you multiply this by 18, you get 94, which is what you would see on your meter. I am not sure, but I think this is normal in every country but the U.S. Since so many of the forum members are American, I often convert my numbers before posting. The A1C refers to the percentage of hemoglobin molecules that are coated in sticky 'sugar', and therefore not working properly. It is a pretty good indicator of your average blood sugar for the last three months. We all use the same system for this measurement.