The importance of normal blood sugar levels is related to trying to prevent the complications of diabetes. If your blood sugar level is not within the ideal or normal blood glucose range you can begin to experience short-term and long-term problems.
Normal blood glucose levels may not be normal for you if you have had high blood sugar for a long period of time. High blood sugar or hyperglycemia may go undetected especially if it rises gradually, because you do not notice the symptoms. Or, if you do notice them, you may attribute them to something else.
Some people are not diagnosed with diabetes until they are hospitalized for one reason or another. That reason may be a heart attack or stroke and often is. One reason for this is long-term problems associated with hyperglycemia include heart disease and stroke (as well as blindness, kidney disease, impotence, nerve disease and loss of limbs).
So, you can see that bringing your blood glucose levels down to normal, if they have been elevated, is very important. To complicate the situation, normal blood sugar levels depend on when the test was taken. A fasting blood glucose level is taken after one has not eaten for 8-12 hours and the normal for a fasting blood glucose is lower than after one has eaten.
A person who is not diabetic will have a normal fasting blood sugar level somewhere between 70 and 100 mg/dL. The normal fasting, or just prior to a meal, level of sugar in the blood for a diabetic is less than 110 or 120 mg/dL.
Blood sugar levels 1- 2 hours after a meal are less than 140 mg/dL in a who is not diabetic. Diabetics will often have higher after meal level of sugar in the blood with the goal (depending upon the diabetic group or organization) being 140-180 mg/dL or less.
How much a blood sugar levels will increase after a meal in a person who is diabetic depends upon the kind and amount of carbohydrate consumed, if they are producing insulin and if so, how much, and how sensitive their insulin is to the carbohydrate consumed. The rise in blood glucose is also related to the amount, kind and level of physical activity. Physical activity helps to utilize the glucose in the blood, letting it enter the cell where it can be used for energy.
Diabetic medications along with lifestyle changes like physical activity and consistent carbohydrate intakes are used to help bring blood sugars to normal. The goal is blood glucose control to help prevent the complications and symptoms of diabetes, whether the diabetes is type 1, 1.5, 2 or 3 diabetes. The diabetic should work with their health care provider to determine their goal range for blood glucose. The goal, then, is to reach and keep blood glucose in that range on a normal or usual basis. This often requires lifestyle changes in the areas of physical activity, food intake and medication regime.
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