What are Normal Blood Glucose Levels?

What are Normal Blood Glucose Levels?

The amount of glucose (“sugar”, measured in mg/dL) in your blood changes throughout the day and night. Your levels will change depending upon when, what and how much you have eaten, and whether or not you have exercised.

Normal Blood Sugars

• A normal fasting (no food for eight hours) blood sugar level is between 70 and 99 mg/dL
• A normal blood sugar level two hours after eating is less than 140 mg/dL

Diabetes is diagnosed by any one of the following:

1. Two consecutive fasting blood glucose tests that are equal to or greater than 126 mg/dL
2. Any random blood glucose that is greater than 200 mg/dL
3. An A1c test that is equal to or greater than 6.5 percent. A1c is an easy blood test that gives a three month average of blood sugars
4. A two-hour oral glucose tolerance test with any value over 200 mg/dL

Sometimes you may have symptoms of fatigue, excessive urination or thirst, or unplanned weight loss. However, often people have no symptoms of high blood glucose and find a diabetes diagnosis surprising.

Pre-diabetes

My doctor says I have pre-diabetes. What is that?

• You are at high risk of developing diabetes. You can prevent or delay diabetes by increasing physical activity, eating healthful foods, and maintaining or losing weight
• Pre-diabetes is also called impaired fasting glucose (IFG)

Pre-diabetes is diagnosed by any one of the following:

• A fasting blood glucose in between 100-125 mg/dL
• An A1c between 5.7 - 6.4 percent
• Any value between 140 mg/dL and 199 mg/dL during a two-hour 75g oral glucose tolerance test

 
Sources: https://www.virginiamason.org/WhatareNormalBloodGlucoseLevels