Results from my First Blood Glucose Test

In case anyone was wondering, my blood glucose test yesterday went quite well. My grandpa - a well-respected doctor in England, Uganda and India - administered the procedure, with great professionalism I might add! In seconds I learned that my blood glucose level was 4.9. But before I explain what the result means (to those of you who don't know) I will explain the concept and procedure of a blood glucose test. As the name suggests, it gives an indication of the amount of glucose (a type of sugar) in your bloodstream.

Because the amount of glucose in your blood increases after a meal (think of the sugars you are ingesting), I was required to fast overnight and take my test prior to breakfast. This is called "Fasting Blood Sugar", requiring 8 hours prior without food and is the test typically done when someone wants to find out if they have diabetes (like I did, hehe). The test involved placing a few drops of blood (taken in a relatively painless finger-prick test) onto a small sterile strip which was then read by an electronic measuring device. In less than a minute, the result came up on the display screen. Since I took a Fasting Blood Sugar test, my blood sugar was expected to be within the range of 4 to 7 mmol/L (that's millimoles per litre). Fortunately, my result of 4.9 fell within this range! :)

With around half of the 1.5 million Australians unaware that they have diabetes, it was a pretty scary thought and for quite some time I had wanted to get the test done. I'm glad that I did, no matter what the result. Some things that you may find interesting about Diabetes:

• Diabetes is Australia's fastest growing chronic disease and there is currently no cure.
• About 1.5 million Australians have diabetes, but only half of them know it because they may be unaware that they are at risk of type 2 diabetes.
• By 2010 the number of Australians with diabetes is predicted to reach 1.8 million.
• Every hour in Australia approximately 11 adults are diagnosed with diabetes. That is 275 people a day or 1925 a week!
• Type 2 diabetes costs Australia $3.1 billion a year.
• Diabetes can lead to potentially lethal complications including heart disease, stroke and kidney failure. Diabetes can also cause blindness, lower limb amputation and erectile dysfunction.
• 70 - 80% of people with diabetes will die of cardiovascular disease.
• Diabetes is the most common cause of blindness in people under the age of 60.
• Diabetes is the most common cause of kidney failure.
• 70% of all lower limb amputations occur in people with diabetes

I know it's pretty scary but the good news is that Type 2 diabetes is preventable. We can all endeavour to reduce our risk and keep our bodies healthy through eating a variety of nutritious foods, being active and maintaining a weight that is healthy for you.

For more information (also source of bullet-point facts):
http://www.dontignorediabetes.com.au/