HbA1c

[jane58]

Hi everyone, I have T2 diabetes, I was diagnosed in 2023 and never been on drugs for it.... i just had my recent HbA1c results and it came back as 57.0mmol/mol. it has gone up since i had it done 6 month ago which was at 51.0 mmol/mol, i was told then that if it didnt come down id most probably be put on metformin. as you can see its gone up not down. when i phoned the GP surgery for my results i was told that it was satisfactory, i'm confused. there is no diabetic nurse at my surgery, apparently they are training a nurse to do the job, in the mean time you can see a nurse practioner or a gp if your very lucky. A friend told me that i should be on something as it may protect my heart as well as help with getting my blood sugars lowered. Any advice most welcome as i know many of you probably know just as much about diabetes than some doctors 🙂 TIA

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Sorry to hear your HbA1c has gone up a little @jane58

Must be difficult not being able to easily get an appointment to discuss your results. Hope you can get some time with a GP to talk through the possible benefits of starting on a medication to help with your glucose management.

 

[pjgtech]

Hi, sorry you are not getting the advice you need from your surgery.
My basic understanding is that 41 and under is non diabetic.
42 to 47 is pre diabetic.
48 and over is diabetic, usually confirmed by two HbA1c blood tests separated by around three months.
So 51 was only just in the range, and obviously 57 is a bit higher still.
You might be given the option to try to reduce the numbers by diet and/or exercise?
Generally for most type 2's a low carb diet or reducing carbs is the recommended way to lose weight.
If it can't be controlled with diet, etc then the medical bods would generally want you to start meds.
Maybe try to have another discussion with your HCP if you can.
Let us know how you get on, cheers

 

[Leadinglights]

I would say the increase is worrying as it indicates your body is struggling to cope with the amount of carbohydrates in your diet and some attention to reducing them would hopefully enable you to reduce the level to something more normal as mentioned would be below 42 mmol/mol. I don't know why your surgery is being so complacent with a result that is clearly a way over the diagnostic threshold and if not reduced could potentially cause problems in the future.
This link may help you see a way of modifying your diet so you won't need medication to reduce your level. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
It is based on the suggested no more than 130g carbs not just sugar per day it is not no carbs and is a very doable approach which many have found successful.

 

[Alan44]

Hi @jane58 I too was diagnosed with a HbA1c of 51 back in Aug last year so put a lot of effort in to reducing it, by reducing carb intake to iro 130 per day, reduced calorie intake to iro1200 per day and increased my exercise as much as I could.
I bought a finger price tester just to see the trend v my effort and it went from 7.5 to 5.6 (ave) over the 3 months until I had my next HbA1c which came back as 46.

Now, the problem is, we have had Xmas and the new year and the weather has not been kind to us, so not been able to do the walking (exercise) I did before.

My carb and calorie count probably went up and my exercise went down and my finger prick tests have gone from an average of 5.6 to 5.9

I put the increase down to the Xmas and new year and the weather.

If I had another HbA1c now it would probably be higher than my 46

For me it's about getting back to doing all the right things that I was doing before Xmas

Alan

 

[Nick Cliff]

Hi @jane58
When assessing your Type 2 condition, and HbA1c results, I understand the GP will look at a number of risk factors, and if you are at lower risk in those, a slightly elevated HbA1c might be considered acceptable. It is still relatively "early days" in your management of the condition - so plenty of time for you to find a diet and exercise routine that works for you and keeps your blood sugar under control. See advice on other posts. If that doesn't work, the medics will definitely recommend medication, and there's more than just Metformin.
Hope this helps and good luck.
Nick

 

[jane58]

Hi @jane58
When assessing your Type 2 condition, and HbA1c results, I understand the GP will look at a number of risk factors, and if you are at lower risk in those, a slightly elevated HbA1c might be considered acceptable. It is still relatively "early days" in your management of the condition - so plenty of time for you to find a diet and exercise routine that works for you and keeps your blood sugar under control. See advice on other posts. If that doesn't work, the medics will definitely recommend medication, and there's more than just Metformin.
Hope this helps and good luck.
Nick

Thank you so much for your reply, very much appreciated🙂

 

[jane58]

Hi @jane58
When assessing your Type 2 condition, and HbA1c results, I understand the GP will look at a number of risk factors, and if you are at lower risk in those, a slightly elevated HbA1c might be considered acceptable. It is still relatively "early days" in your management of the condition - so plenty of time for you to find a diet and exercise routine that works for you and keeps your blood sugar under control. See advice on other posts. If that doesn't work, the medics will definitely recommend medication, and there's more than just Metformin.
Hope this helps and good luck.
Nick

Hi, sorry you are not getting the advice you need from your surgery.
My basic understanding is that 41 and under is non diabetic.
42 to 47 is pre diabetic.
48 and over is diabetic, usually confirmed by two HbA1c blood tests separated by around three months.
So 51 was only just in the range, and obviously 57 is a bit higher still.
You might be given the option to try to reduce the numbers by diet and/or exercise?
Generally for most type 2's a low carb diet or reducing carbs is the recommended way to lose weight.
If it can't be controlled with diet, etc then the medical bods would generally want you to start meds.
Maybe try to have another discussion with your HCP if you can.
Let us know how you get on, cheers

Many Thanks for your reply, its much appreciated 🙂