Monday, June 13, 2011

blood sugar level

What is blood glucose

Blood glucose level is the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood. It is also known as serum glucose level. The amount of glucose in the blood is expressed as millimoles per litre (mmol/l).

Normally, blood glucose levels stay within narrow limits throughout the day (4 to 8mmol/l). But they are higher after meals and usually lowest in the morning.

If a person has diabetes, their blood glucose level sometimes moves outside these limits.

Why control blood glucose levels?

When you have diabetes it's very important that your glucose level is as near normal as possible. The primary goal of any diabetes treatment is simply to keep the glucose level stable.

Stable blood glucose significantly reduces the risk of developing late-stage diabetic complications. These may start to appear 10 to 15 years after diagnosis with Type 1 diabetes and often less than 10 years after diagnosis with Type 2 diabetes. They include:

--neuropathy (nerve disease)
--retinopathy (eye disease)
--nephropathy (kidney disease)
--cerebrovascular disease, such as stroke
--cardiovascular disease, such as heart attack, hypertension and heart failure.

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