It is important to discuss your specific goals with your health care team. However, I will discuss generally accepted targets below. Things I think your provider should consider when helping you set goals for blood sugar: type of diabetes, blood sugar level when you experience symptoms, age, pregnancy status, hypoglycemic unawareness (if you feel low blood sugars), comorbidities (other health conditions), living situation (for example, do you live alone), your goals/wishes, other medications you take. We will discuss goals during pregnancy in a later post.
- General Blood Sugar Targets for Most Adults (non-pregnant) Fasting: 90-130 70-130 Before Meals After Meals: Less than 180 70-150 at Bedtime A1c (average sugar test over the past 2-3 months) under 7% General Blood Sugar Targets for Adults if in the Hospital (non-pregnant) Non-Critical: Under 140 prior to meals, under 180 random if patient is stable Critical: 140-180. Ages 0-6 years 100-180 before meals 110-120 at bedtime A1c (average sugar test over the past 2-3 months) 7.5-8.5% Ages 6-12 years 90-180 before meals 100-180 at bedtime A1c (average sugar test over the past 2-3 months) <8.0% Ages 13-19 years 90-130 before meals 90-150 at bedtime A1c (average sugar test over the past 2-3 months) under 7.5% We will discuss more tips on checking your blood sugar later. Sometimes helps helps to keep a journal of what you eat/drink/exercise/blood sugar readings to help look for patterns. We will also discuss this more later. Stay tuned!
