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I am feeling a little lost!

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Every HbA1c blood test i've had have included cholesterol. This should be a standard procedure. I would make sure they do a cholesterol test with the HbA1c.
 
I have never had a Cholesterol with every HBA1C and I have them at least annually.
 
I'd ask for a breakdown of the cholesterol.... Myself I get a copy of the report before leaving the Dr.'s office so I can track my progress....
 
Grogg1 said:
I was diagnosed by hba1c test end of Nov. but no one mentioned my cholesterol, would it have been tested at the same time? If I'm checked 3 months later should I ensure they check my cholesterol and if so when I get the result what figure (s) should I be looking for.
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it's normally part of the standard assessment once you're diagnosed - they have a target lower than the standard target for cholesterol in the general population.
It kind of depends what level you should aim for - the NHS has a very simplistic view which a lot of people are critical of - they just go off the total cholesterol figure - which they try to keep below 4mmol/L for diabetics. More info from NHS here:
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Cholesterol/Pages/Introduction.aspx

However, it's probably as important that the ratio of your total to your HDL is below 4 - e.g. 5.4 total to 1.4 HDL than the total is lower. If you're on the Low Carb / High Fat diet you might find your cholesterol goes up, but if you're eating enough good fats the HDL will be high too and mitigate it. The page I've linked shows the figure for LDL should be 3 or less - however, there's a couple of things to remember - 1) They don't actually measure the LDL directly, they just calculate it based on the others, but the method they use has come under criticism for not being very good if you have a lower than average level of Triglycerides and there's a better calculation, called the 'Iranian Equation'. This matches the actual levels better. So the end result is that the LDL figure the NHS test will give you, is probably too high if your Triglyceride level is low.

Further, LDL - the 'bad' cholesterol is also 'a bit more complicated than that' - LDL is an essential part of your fat-energy transport system and in of itself, it's not a bad thing - but not all LDL is equal - the problem with it is that as the proteins age, they get other molecules attached (one of which is glucose) which makes them denser and it's those 'small dense particles' that cause all the problems, clogging up your arteries.

Standard blood tests don't measure the amount of small dense LDL, but there's a strong correlation with low levels of it if you have low triglycerides and high HDL - one of the jobs of HDL is to clear them up.

So, it's quite complicated - but ask for a 'full panel' - as the total score isn't telling you much - and when you get the results look for a HDL above 1 and triglycerides below 2.0 and the ratio of the total / HDL should be 4 or less.
 
That's interesting. My doc is not happy with my LDL but my DSN says my Trigs & HDL cancel the LDL out & is fine.
 
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